People's Consultative Group
Encyclopedia
The People’s Consultative Group (PCG) was a citizen’s group in Assam
constituted by ULFA to initiate the talk process as mediator between the central government
and the outfit itself. It was constituted on September 8, 2005 with 11 members in it.It was dissolved by ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa on the first week of February 2011. ULFA is initiating the peace talk process without it. First round of talks was held on 10th February 2011 on New Delhi.
with Mamoni Raisom Goswami
being the chief interlocutor
between the ULFA and the Centre. Some of its members are believed to be ULFA sympathizers or ex-ULFA cadres.
also agreed to felicitate the peace-talk process but denied any unilateral ceasefire with the outfit.
, the group virtually launched a campaign seeking an immediate end to the Army operations.
, the commander-in-chief of the armed wing of the outfit, reportedly said, ‘‘We will be compelled to call off the peace initiative because of the state’s attitude. While we took a major step by forming a PCG to work out the modalities of the talks with the government, what the state has done is nothing but sheer betrayal’’. The PCG held an emergency meeting in Guwahati
taking note of the security forces’ operation and also threatened to call off the peace process if such operations were not stopped. On October 2005, two rounds of talks were held between the group and the government. But the third round, which was scheduled for May 2006, failed to take place as mistrust prevailed between both the groups over ULFA’s contentious demand of sovereignty for Assam. As the peace process derailed without any results, the validity of the PCG was also put under scanner.
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
constituted by ULFA to initiate the talk process as mediator between the central government
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
and the outfit itself. It was constituted on September 8, 2005 with 11 members in it.It was dissolved by ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa on the first week of February 2011. ULFA is initiating the peace talk process without it. First round of talks was held on 10th February 2011 on New Delhi.
Members
The list of members is as follows as released by the outfit’s chairman Arabinda RajkhowaArabinda Rajkhowa
Arabinda Rajkhowa , , alias Mijanur Rahman Choudhury is the Chaiman of the banned outfit ULFA. He is one of the founder members of the outfit. He was also the Vice-President of the Indo-Burma Revolutionary Front...
with Mamoni Raisom Goswami
Mamoni Raisom Goswami
Indira Goswami , known by her pen name Mamoni Raisom Goswami and popularly as Mamoni Baideo, was an Assamese editor, poet, professor, scholar and writer....
being the chief interlocutor
Interlocutor (politics)
An interlocutor is someone who formally explains the views of a government and also can relay messages back to a government. Unlike a spokesperson, an interlocutor often has no formal position within a government or any formal authority to speak on its behalf, and even when they do, everything an...
between the ULFA and the Centre. Some of its members are believed to be ULFA sympathizers or ex-ULFA cadres.
- Mamoni Raisom GoswamiMamoni Raisom GoswamiIndira Goswami , known by her pen name Mamoni Raisom Goswami and popularly as Mamoni Baideo, was an Assamese editor, poet, professor, scholar and writer....
(Jnanpith AwardJnanpith AwardThe Jnanpith Award is a literary award in India. Along with the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship, it is one of the two most prestigious literary honours in the country...
ee writer) - Reboti Phukan (Former footballer and childhood friend of Paresh BaruahParesh BaruahParesh Barua is a rebel leader, born in 1957 at Jeraichakali Bhariagaon, Assam, India. He is the Acting Vice Chairman and Commander-in-Chief of the rebel group ULFA....
) - Arup Borborah (Lawyer)
- Lachit BordoloiLachit BordoloiLachit Bordoloi is a journalist and adviser to MASS, a non-profit human rights organization in Assam. He is also the convener of the Peoples Committee for Peace Initiatives in Assam and a member of the Peoples Consultative Group organized to initiate the peace process between Government of India...
(MASSMassMass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
leader) - Mukul Mahanta (Engineer)
- Ajit Bhuyan (Editor, AjiAji Assamese DailyAji Assamese Daily is an Assamese language newspaper published in Guwahati, Assam, India. .On 2009-03-24 the executive editor of the paper, Anil Majumder, was shot dead...
) - Haider Hussain (Editor, Asomiya PratidinAsomiya PratidinAsomiya Pratidin is an Assamese daily newspaper, caters whole of Assam with four editions published from Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Bongaigaon and North Lakhimpur, Assam, India...
) - Brajen Gogoi (Doctor)
- Dilip Patgiri (Adviser to the Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad)
- Diganta Konwar (Journalist)
- Hiranya Saikia (Sports organiser)
Reactions
P. V. Sumant, the Director-General of Police, although welcomed the move, made it clear that operations would be continued since no ceasefire agreement was there with the outfit and the peace initiative, though a laudable step, was not enough to merit suspension of operations against it. He also expressed his concern that terror outfits are known to make such overtures to buy time. The state governmentGovernment of Assam
The Government of Assam is the provincial governing authority of the state of Assam in the Republic of India.It consists of the Governor as the head of the state, who is nominated by the Government of India. The head of government is the Chief Minister, who is the leader of the group that commands...
also agreed to felicitate the peace-talk process but denied any unilateral ceasefire with the outfit.
Activities
On September 11, 2005, three days after its formation, PCG launched a state-wide opinion-sharing campaign through letters, SMS, fax and email. It adopted two more resolutions during it first sitting. It appealed to the Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi to expedite the peace process. It also expressed its concern over director-general of police P.V. Sumant’s remark that operation would be going on against ULFA. On November 5, 2005, at a rally in NalbariNalbari
Nalbari is a city and a municipal board in Nalbari district in the Indian state of Assam. Nalbari is headquarter of Nalbari District.-Education:...
, the group virtually launched a campaign seeking an immediate end to the Army operations.
The talk-process
The future of the talk-process became uncertain when security forces killed 12 cadres of the outfit on September 14 in upper Assam using mortars and other explosives. Paresh BaruahParesh Baruah
Paresh Barua is a rebel leader, born in 1957 at Jeraichakali Bhariagaon, Assam, India. He is the Acting Vice Chairman and Commander-in-Chief of the rebel group ULFA....
, the commander-in-chief of the armed wing of the outfit, reportedly said, ‘‘We will be compelled to call off the peace initiative because of the state’s attitude. While we took a major step by forming a PCG to work out the modalities of the talks with the government, what the state has done is nothing but sheer betrayal’’. The PCG held an emergency meeting in Guwahati
Guwahati
Guwahati, Pragjyotishpura in ancient Assam formerly known as Gauhati is a metropolis,the largest city of Assam in India and ancient urban area in North East India, with a population of 963,429. It is also the largest metropolitan area in north-eastern India...
taking note of the security forces’ operation and also threatened to call off the peace process if such operations were not stopped. On October 2005, two rounds of talks were held between the group and the government. But the third round, which was scheduled for May 2006, failed to take place as mistrust prevailed between both the groups over ULFA’s contentious demand of sovereignty for Assam. As the peace process derailed without any results, the validity of the PCG was also put under scanner.