Staff Reporter :Anup Chetia, the runaway general secretary of the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA), has been extradited to India, almost 18 years into his arrest in Dhaka. The extradition was okayed by Bangladesh, after protracted deliberations at the highest level of the Indian government. The handover took place at Dawki in Sylhet border at around 2 am on Wednesday morning. Dawki is a border trade centre between Bangladesh and India. Following the release from the Kashimpur Jail in Gazipur, 48-year-old Anup Chetia, whose original name is Golap Barua, along with his two other associates– Babul Sharma and Shakti Prashad who were also arrested with the ULFA leader-was handed over to a team of India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officers. India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval led the Indian team and received the three Indian citizens from the members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB).The Press Trust of India (PTI) reports that Anup Chetia’s extradition was only possible after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally intervened and sorted out the matter with Bangladesh. It was reported that the Indian High Commissioner to Dhaka Pankaj Saran was in Delhi for the last two days for the handover issue.Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said that the ULFA leader returned to India through a border point after being freed from Kashimpur Jail on completion of his jail term. “After the end of Anup Chetia’s jail term, we contacted the Indian High Commission about his release. As he is a foreigner and expressed his interest to leave the country, we have freed him and sent him to his country,” said the minister.Hours after Bangladesh handed over the ULFA top leader, Narendra Modi phoned his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina thanking her for help in fight against terrorism. He also wished Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Diwali, a Hindu festival of lights held in the period October to November. In a post on Twitter, the Indian PM’s office said, “PM Narendra Modi spoke to Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina. He wished PM Hasina on Diwali and thanked her for the help in fighting terrorism,” report Indian ageniecs and newspapers. Prime Minister’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim, however, said that although Modi phoned Sheikh Hasina, they did not discuss the Anup Chetia issue. Modi greeted Sheikh Hasina on the occasion of Diwali. Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh also tweeted trice after the handover. He also thanked the Bangladesh government for its ‘active cooperation’ in sending Anup Chetia. “Handing over of Anup Cheita by Bangladesh shows its commitment and maturity to cooperate with India on issues like terror and organised crime,” he said in of the tweets. Anup Chetia is wanted in cases of murder, kidnapping and extortion in his country. He is the brain behind the birth of ULFA in 1979. He is Paresh Baruah’s cousin brother. Top ULFA leader Paresh Barua also remains on the run and is believed to have taken shelter in Myanmar.India had been repeatedly demanding deportation of Anup Chetia for over two decades, but Bangladesh could not extradite him earlier due to the lack of an extradition treaty between Bangladesh and India. Anup Chetia was arrested from Mohammadpur area of Dhaka on December 21 in 1997 for trespassing Bangladesh. He was subsequently handed down seven years jail terms by two courts for cross-border intrusion, carrying fake passports and illegally keeping foreign currencies. Despite the expiry of his prison term, the ULFA leader was in jail under a High Court directive asking the authorities to keep him in safe custody until a decision was taken regarding his asylum plea.Anup Chetia had sought political asylum in Bangladesh thrice in 2005, 2008 and in 2011. He had also applied to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for political asylum in Bangladesh, contending he had been fighting for a sovereign Assam. However, the request was declined. Earlier, Bangladesh had handed over some other top leaders, including Arabinda Rajkhowa on December 2 in 2009 along the border with northeastern Indian state of Assam. They have joined peace talks with the Indian government.Born in Jerai Gaon in Tinsukia district of Assam, Anup Chetia, who is also known as Sunil Baruah, Bhaijan or Ahmed, fled from India in the early 1990s. He had been arrested in March 1991, but the then Assam chief minister released him from jail, following which he fled from India.
