Assam willing to sign ceasefire if ULFA agrees

A two-week cessation is still in progress and might be extended if the ULFA offer a positive response.

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi has said that he is willing to sign a ceasefire treaty with the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) if the outfit is ready to reciprocate the offer.

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"I am extending a hand of friendship to the ULFA and would also except them to do the same. We are willing to sign a ceasefire agreement with the ULFA and try and settle the problem through peace talks," he said.

The ULFA, on the other hand, are yet to react on the offer.

A two-week cessation of security operations against the ULFA began last Saturday when the Assam government offered free movement to the rebels for visiting their homes.

"This is a goodwill gesture from our side and we might extend the deadline if the response is positive."

ULFA had held landmark talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last October in New Delhi to pave way for a bilateral ceasefire.

More than 15,000 people have lost their lives to insurgency in Assam since the ULFA's launch in 1979.

ULFA is a frontline rebel group which has been fighting for an independent Assamese homeland since 1979.