''Assam separatist movements'' refers to a series of multiple insurgent and separatist movements that are or have been operating the in Northeast Indian state of

Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...

. The conflict started in the 1970s following tension between the native indigenous Assamese people and the

Indian government The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

over alleged neglect, political, social, cultural, economic issues and increased levels of illegal immigration from

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million pe ...

. The conflict has resulted in the deaths of 12,000

United Liberation Front of Assam The United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) (Assamese: সংযুক্ত মুক্তি বাহিনী, অসম) is an armed separatist organisation operating in the Northeast Indian state of Assam. It seeks to establish an indep ...

(ULFA) militants and 18,000 others. Several organisations contribute to the insurgency including the ULFA, the Adivasi National Liberation Army, Karbi Longri N.C. Hills Liberation Front (KLNLF) and the

National Democratic Front of Bodoland The National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) was an armed separatist outfit which sought to obtain a sovereign Boroland for the Bodo people. It is designated as a terrorist organisation by the Government of India. NDFB traces its origin ...

(NDFB) with ULFA perhaps the largest of these groups, and one of the oldest, having been founded in 1979. The ULFA has attacked Hindi-speaking migrant workers and a movement exists favouring

secession Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics l ...

from the

Republic of India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The alleged neglect and economic, social, cultural and political exploitation by the Indian state are the main reasons behind the growth of this secessionist movement. The ULFA seeks to establish a sovereign Assam via armed struggle.

MULTA Multa (russian: Мульта; alt, Мый Туу, ''Mıy Tuu'') is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, rural locality (a Village#Russia, selo) in Verkh-Uymonskoye Rural Settlement of Ust-Koksinsky District, the Altai Republic, Russia. The p ...

, on the other hand, seeks to establish an

Islamic state An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...

in India via the jihadist struggle of Muslims of both indigenous and migrant origin. The Government of India banned the ULFA in 1990 and classifies it as a terrorist group, while the

US State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other na ...

lists it under "other groups of concern". Founded at Rang Ghar, a historic structure dating to the Ahom kingdom on April7, 1979, the ULFA has been the subject of military operations by the Indian Army since 1990, which have continued into the present. In the past two decades some 30,000 people have died in the clash between the rebels and the government. Though separatist sentiment is considered strong, it is disputed if the secessionist movement continues to enjoy popular support. Conversely, assertions of Assamese nationalism are found in

Assamese literature Assamese literature ( as, অসমীয়া সাহিত্য, translit=ɔxɔmiya xaɦitjɔ}) is the entire corpus of poetry, novels, short stories, plays, documents and other writings in the Assamese language. It also includes the lite ...

and culture. The neglect and exploitation by the Indian state are common refrains in the Assamese-language media with some reports casting the ULFA leaders as saviors. Internationally acclaimed Assamese novelist Indira Goswami has tried to broker peace for several years between the rebels and the government. In a recent development Hiren Gohain, a public intellectual, has stepped in to expedite the process. In 2012, all Adivasi militants including those of Adivasi Cobra Force surrendered. On 15 May 2019, twelve people were injured after a grenade exploded in front of a shopping mall in Guwahati. Days later the United Liberation Front of Assam claimed responsibility for the attack, and the authorities arrested the main suspects. In 2020 and 2021, all

Bodo Bodo may refer to: Ethnicity * Boro people, an ethno-linguistic group mainly from Northwest Assam, India * Bodo-Kachari people, an umbrella group from Nepal, India and Bangladesh that includes the Bodo people Culture and language * Boro cu ...

Karbi Karbi may refer to: Places * Karbi, Armenia * Karbi Anglong Plateau, an extension of the Indian Plate in Assam, India * Karbi Anglong district, a district of Assam, north-eastern India Other uses * Karbi people, an ethnic group of North-east ...

, Kuki and Dimasa militants surrendered to the government of India. In 2022,

Gorkha The Gurkhas or Gorkhas (), with endonym Gorkhali ), are soldiers native to the Indian subcontinent, Indian Subcontinent, chiefly residing within Nepal and some parts of Northeast India. The Gurkha units are composed of Nepalis and Indian Go ...

and Tiwa Militants also surrendered.

References

{{Ongoing military conflicts 1990s in Assam 2000s in Assam 2010s in Assam 2020s in Assam * Separatism in India Assamese nationalism Politics of Assam Insurgencies in Asia Ethnic conflicts Rebellions in India

See also

References