The Deafening Silence of ULFA(I): A Hush Before the Rain
For months now, ULFA(I) — the once vocal and feared armed group of Assam — has gone completely silent.
No statement.
No action.
No reaction.
Not even a routine communique from the elusive Paresh Baruah.
This silence isn’t ordinary. It comes at a time when the government has intensified pressure on the outfit from all sides. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has recently charge-sheeted Paresh Baruah and others in multiple cases involving cross-border terrorism and arms movement.
Even more significantly, self-styled ‘Brigadier’ and operational commander Rupam Asom — one of ULFA(I)’s key assets on ground logistics — is now in police custody.
And yet—ULFA(I) says nothing. The jungle command remains mute.
---
A Pattern, Not an Accident
ULFA(I)’s silence appears tactical, not accidental. Those familiar with the group’s style know that when it goes quiet, something brews. Over the decades, silence has been a prelude to restructuring, retaliation, or retreat.
With command routes under surveillance, Myanmar bases disrupted, and a leaner cadre, ULFA(I) may be recalibrating—not defeated, just conserving energy.
Some insiders hint at internal divisions too—between older commanders rooted in traditional guerrilla warfare, and a younger line of ideologues who see no future in bullets without a political roadmap.
---
And What About WESEA?
Let’s not forget—ULFA(I) was not just running its own armed campaign. It was the initiator and ideological backbone of the proposed WESEA (Western South East Asia) Liberation Front — a joint command platform to bring together Northeast rebel outfits under one strategic vision.
The silence could also be linked to talks, regrouping, or coordination within that larger framework. If ULFA(I) speaks or acts now, it risks exposing the network prematurely.
So, it waits.
---
A Dangerous Calm
In Assam, people know what dangerous silence feels like.
No sound from ULFA(I) does not mean peace.
It may mean planning. It may mean watching.
> “The jungle is quiet. The command is listening,” says a former intelligence officer, requesting anonymity.
The government sees silence as temporary. Security has been quietly ramped up across vulnerable upper Assam zones. No one believes the guns are gone—only shifted out of sight.
---
Final Word: This Is Not a Goodbye. It's a Pause.
ULFA(I)’s silence isn’t surrender. It’s a strategy shaped by changing terrain, smarter policing, and tighter borders.
But make no mistake — the ideology hasn’t died, and neither has the ambition.
For now, the jungle listens.
And Assam waits.
Because even the hardest storms often begin with a hush
