The National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) was an armed separatist outfit which wanted to obtain a sovereign Boroland for the Bodo people. The Saoraigwra faction is the third group of NDFB to shun violence and hold peace talks with New Delhi. Earlier a progressive faction of NDFB had signed a ceasefire agreement with New Delhi in 2005. Most wanted NDFB leader G Bidai is not the part of the group

New Delhi: Banned National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) has signed an agreement of suspension of operations with the government.

NDFB, an armed separatist outfit, wanted to obtain a sovereign Boroland for the Bodo people and had been designated as a terrorist organisation by the Government of India.

The tripartite statement read: “NDFB under the leadership of B Saoraigwra, President has agreed to abjure violence, come overground and join the peace process by being a signatory to the proposed comprehensive Memorandum of Settlement with Bodo organisations. Towards this objective, Government of India, Government of Assam and NDFB entered into a tripartite SoO agreement on January 16, 2020.”

The Indian Army, however, has clarified that the most wanted NDFB leader G Bidai is not the part of the group. The Bidai faction of NDFB was responsible for the massacre of over 80 Adivasis in northern Assam in December 2014 after which most of its leaders fled to Myanmar and Bhutan.

Recently, around 50 leaders and cadres of National Democratic Front of Bodoland – Saoraigwra (NDFB-S) returned to India through the Myanmar border to hold peace talks with the Narendra Modi-led NDA Government. The members were escorted by the Indian Army to an undisclosed Army base amid protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019.

As per the local media reports, B Saoraigwra, the Chief of NDFB-S along with his family members and security personnel, entered India through Tamu in Manipur while General Secretary B Ferrenga, the council members and other cadres crossed the Longwa international border in Nagaland to enter India.

The Indian Army sources have claimed that in the coming days more cadres will be joining the peace process as the Myanmar army has ordered a crackdown on all the Indian insurgent groups operating from its soil since January 29.

Facing a severe shortage of funds, the NDFB cadres have decided to lay down their arms and join the peace process.

The Saoraigwra faction is the third group of NDFB to shun violence and hold peace talks with New Delhi.

Earlier a progressive faction of NDFB had signed a ceasefire agreement with New Delhi in 2005.

As per the reports in the local media, over 3,000 members of NDFB(P) are housed in three government-approved designated ceasefire camps in Udalguri, Baksa, and Kokrajhar districts of Assam.