52 DNLA militants lay down arms in Assam

As many as 52 cadres of the Dimasa National Liberation Army (DNLA), including four women cadres, laid down their arms and ammunition in Assam's Dima Hasao district today.

Diphu (Assam): As many as 52 cadres of the Dimasa National Liberation Army (DNLA), including four women, laid down their arms and ammunition in Assam's Dima Hasao district on Wednesday. The group surrendered to Dima Hasao Superintendent of Police, Pushparaj Singh. The weapons surrendered by the DNLA cadres included a .22 bore rifle, one carbine, one semi-automatic rifle, a magazine, and several rounds of live ammunition of different arms.

The militant outfit was fighting for a Dimaraji, a separate state for Dimasa, an ethnolinguistic community residing in the Northeastern states of Assam and Nagaland. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took to Twitter to welcome them to the mainstream. Sarma wrote, "Glad that 52 cadres of Dimasa National Liberation Army (DNLA), including 4 women cadres, have surrendered and joined the existing Dhansiri camp, Karbi Anglong. The weapons surrendered by them include a carbine & a pump action gun, among others. I welcome you all to mainstream."

The organization had declared a unilateral ceasefire with the government of Assam on September 25 last year. In November and December 2021, several cadres of the outfit had surrendered to the government and returned to the mainstream.