Bangladesh will hand over the general secretary of United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA), Anup Chetia, and others members of the front to India by the middle of August this year. Home minister Sahara Khatun on Wednesday said Bangladesh had started the legal process for the purpose. “We have asked the authorities concerned to complete the legal process of handing over Chetia to India as soon as possible,” she said.
“In return, India will extradite some Bangladeshi fugitives including two killers of Bangabadhu, Capt (dismissed) Mazed and Risalder (dismissed) Muslehuddin, who have been hiding there,” she added.
A high official of the home ministry on Wednesday told The Independent that the ULFA leader, whose prison term had ended in 2003, would be handed over to India in accordance with the agreements on transfer of sentenced persons and mutual legal assistance in criminal matters. At the same time, other members of the font are likely to be handed over to India, he said.
“Under the treaties, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) is likely to hand them over to the Border Security Forces (BSF) of India,” he added.
The agreements were signed during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to New Delhi in January 2010. During her visit, the Indian Prime Minister had requested her to hand over the arrested ULFA leaders including Anup Chetia to the Indian authorities.
Sources said Indian home minister P Chidambaram had asked Dhaka to hand over Anup Chetia (aka Golap Barua, Sunil Barua, Bhaijan and Ahmed) to Delhi before the visit of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Bangladesh in September.
The Indian Prime Minister is scheduled to visit Dhaka on September 6-7 to sign a number of bilateral agreements, including one on sharing of the Tista waters, in a bid to build a new and forward-looking relationship with Bangladesh.
Delhi is awaiting the return of Chetia to kick-start peace talks with top ULFA leaders.
Chetia was first arrested in March 1991 in Assam, but was subsequently released by the then state chief minister, Hiteswar Saikia. He was arrested again in Dhaka on December 21, 1997 on charges of violating the Foreigners Act and the Passports Act of the country. Two of Chetia’s associates, identified as Babul Sharma and Laxmi Prasad, were also arrested along with him.
The ULFA general secretary had been charged with illegally entering Bangladesh and possessing two forged Bangladeshi passports, an unauthorised satellite telephone and unauthorised foreign currencies. He was sentenced to seven years in jail by a Dhaka court.
Earlier, Bangladesh had arrested ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa who was recently handed over to the Indian authorities.
Bangladesh had always turned down India’s requests to hand over Chetia until the extradition treaties were signed between the two countries.
-With The Independent input
