Guwahati, June 2: In a major development, around 40 cadres, including the commander-in-chief of a tribal militant outfit laid down their arms in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district on Friday.
According to police, the surrendered rebels also handed over a huge cache of arms and ammunition to the security forces. The surrendered weapons included three AK series rifles, 19 pistols, five other rifles, two grenades and assorted live ammunition.
The militants, who surrendered, belonged to the Adivasi People’s Liberation Army (APLA). The commander-in-chief of the APLA has been identified as Sahil Munda.
The Adivasi People’s Liberation Army (APLA) was formed as a break-away faction in 2019 of Adivasi National Liberation Army with about 125 members.
“Today, 40 cadres of APLA including their commander- in-chief laid down their arms in Karbi Anglong. We are very happy that they have return back to mainstream,” said an official.
Speaking to media persons, Sahil Munda said that he and some other cadres of the outfit decided to lay down arms “after seeing the development taking place in the state under the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led government and how problems of the Adivasi community are being addressed”.
