The Tripura Pradesh Congress has demanded adequate compensation and rehabilitation for victims of the ethnic riots that devastated the state in the 1980s and 1990s.
This call comes in close on the heels of the recent announcement by the Central Government of a hefty Rs 250 crore rehabilitation package for militants of the NLFT and ATTF who surrendered recently in Jampuijala, Tripura.
IANS Reports : Eleven days after the surrender of 584 extremists of two militant outfits, the opposition Congress in Tripura on Friday demanded to publish a White Paper containing details on the surrendered militants and their involvement in militant activities.
Tripura state unit Congress President Asish Kumar Saha said that former Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb (2018-2022), now Lok Sabha member, after the BJP came to power in 2018, asserted that the militancy problem was over and even incumbent Chief Minister Manik Saha echoed similar views.
“When according to Deb and Saha, militancy was over in Tripura several years back, from where suddenly such a large number of militants emerged ? We want to know what type of militant activities they were involved in before the surrender,” the state Congress chief told the media.
“People of Tripura are keen to know from the state government about these surrendered militants and their role in the militancy period. The state government should publish White Paper detailing about these surrendered militants,” Asish Saha said.
Commenting on the package, sanctioned by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for the returnees, Saha said that neither the Central, nor the state government took any steps or announce any scheme to provide financial benefit to the large number of people who were killed, injured and displaced from their homes due to militancy in Tripura.
| Watch Asish Saha speaks about White Paper & Rehabilitation of riot victims |
Despite a series of agitations by the ethnic riot victims and displaced people, the state government and the Centre have not taken any initiative for these hapless people, the Congress leader said and demanded to provide rehabilitation and announcement of financial package for them who had left their houses and properties due to militancy.
Notably, On September 24, altogether 584 extremists of the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) and All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTF) outfits surrendered and deposited before the Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha at a surrender ceremony at the Tripura State Rifles (TSR) seventh battalion headquarters at Jampuijala in Sepahijala district.
The militants of both the outfits have deposited 168 arms, including many sophisticated weapons and a large cache of different types of ammunition.
The militants surrendered to the Tripura government after the signing of the Memorandum of Settlement with the Centre and Tripura government in Delhi on September 4 in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Tripura Chief Minister, other political leaders and officials of the MHA and Tripura government.
(Tripura, Tripura News)
