Rajkhowa writes formally to Gogoi for peace talks

Guwahati, Jan 17 (PTI) Assam Chief Minister TarunGogoi has received a formal letter from ULFA chairman ArabindaRajkhowa expressing his outfit�s willingness to hold peacetalks with the government.

Stating that the outfit''s central executive councilwould be meeting soon, the chief minister said, "I havereceived a letter from Rajkhowa about ULFA''s willingness tosit for the talks.

"The talks process is moving in the right direction. Ican''t say exactly on which date the talks will be held as itwill be decided only after the ULFA executive council meetsand decides. When the talks will be held is now up to them,"Gogoi said last evening on the sidelines of a meeting here.

"The decisions taken at the meeting will becommunicated to the government for the beginning of the peacetalks," he said.

Earlier, discussions were held a number of timesbetween central government appointed interlocutor P C Haldharand ULFA leaders when they were in jail prior to their releaseon bail this month.

The state government had not opposed to the bailpetitions of frontline ULFA leaders to pave the way for thepeace process.

According to Hiren Gogoi, Convenor of the NationalConvention of Intellectuals here which is initiating the peaceprocess, all ULFA leaders and cadres including its elusive''commander-in-chief'' Paresh Baruah were bound by the decisionof the central executive council on talks.