By A Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI
Manipur-based Islamic militant outfit People’s United Liberation Front (PULF) has been trying to establish contacts with dreaded militant group Laskar-e-Toiba (LeT) and a few youths from Manipur even received training in the LeT camps in Pakistan, security sources said. Sources said that the PULF, formed in 1992 following a series of attacks on people belonging to Islamic community in Manipur and at the initial stages, the NSCN (I-M) also extended helping hand to the outfit. But in the later stages, the PULF managed to establish links with the Harkat-ul-Mujaheedin (HUM) and this fact came to light following a crack down launched against Pakistani Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) and HUM operatives in different parts of Assam in 1999, during which more than 40 persons were arrested.
The PULF has not been indulging in any major act of violence in recent times and the activities of the members of the group were mainly restricted to drugs smuggling and other criminal activities. The outfit also suffered severe setbacks in recent times following arrests of senior members of the outfit and even the chief of the PULF was recently arrested in Guwahati.
However, the security agencies are aware of attempts by the outfit to establish contacts with the LeT and some members of the outfit also visit Bangladesh frequently. But no detail of the contacts of PULF in Bangladesh is known to the security agencies. The attempts of the outfit to establish contacts with the LeT came to light after the arrest of one of the members of the outfit in Jammu and Kashmir. Sources said that the PULF member from Manipur was arrested immediately after he returned to India after undergoing training in LeT bases in Pakistan and during questioning by the security agencies, he admitted that the PULF was trying to establish links with the LeT to strengthen the outfit. Sources also said that apart from the arrested member of the PULF, a few others from Manipur also joined the LeT and other Jammu and Kashmir based jehadi groups in recent years.
So far, the PULF does not have strong bases in Assam and it is believed that the outfit has only been maintaining contacts in areas like parts of Barak valley districts and Hojai area of Nagaon district. Though the PULF chief was arrested from a rented house in Guwahati, sources said that he was only hiding in the city to avoid arrest and was not planning to carry out any subversive activities.
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