By IANS,
Guwahati : Six separatist guerrilla groups in India’s northeast Sunday called a 17-hour general strike Friday to boycott the Independence Day even as security forces were put on maximum alert across the region.
“We appeal to the people of the region not to join the Independence Day celebrations,” a joint rebel statement said.
The groups that have called for the boycott are the outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), the Kamtapur Liberation Organisation (KLO), the Tripura Peoples Democratic Front (TPDF), the Revolutionary People’s Front (RPF), the People’s Revolutionary Front of Kangleipak (PREPAK) and the United National Liberation Front (UNLF).
These groups are active in Assam, Manipur and Tripura.
Militant groups in the northeast have for years boycotted national events to protest New Delhi’s rule over the region.
Security forces have been put on maximum alert across the region to thwart possible rebel strikes.
“We have deployed security forces in strength across the state,” Assam police chief R.N. Mathur said. Similar security arrangements were made in other states of the region.