National Liberation Front of Tripura

The Baptist Church of Tripura was initially set up by missionaries from New Zealand in the 1940s. Despite their efforts, even until the 1980s, only a few thousand people in Tripura had converted to Christianity. In the aftermath of one of the worst ethnic riots, the NLFT was born in 1989 with the backing of the Baptist Church of Tripura.[1] Since then, the NLFT has been advancing its cause through armed rebellion. In its constitution, the organisation claims to represent the indigenous population which it claims has been marginalised by "the subjugation policy of imperialist Hindustani (India)"; its constitution makes no mention of any specific religion and claims to extend membership to "any person irrespective of caste, sex or creed".[4]

The NLFT has been described as engaging in terrorist violence motivated by their Christian beliefs.[5] The NLFT is listed as a terrorist organisation in the Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002.[2] The state government contends that the Baptist Church of Tripura supplies arms and gives financial support to the NLFT.[3] In April 2000, according to the state government, the secretary of the Noapara Baptist Church in Tripura, Nagmanlal Halam, was arrested with explosives and confessed that for two years he had been buying explosives for the NLFT.[1] In 2000, the NLFT threatened to kill Hindus celebrating the religious festival of Durga Puja.[6] At least 20 Hindus in Tripura have been killed by the NLFT in two years for resisting forced conversion to Christianity.[7] A leader of the Jamatia tribe, Rampada Jamatia, said that armed NLFT militants were forcibly converting tribal villagers to Christianity, which he said was a serious threat to Hinduism.[7] It is believed that as many as 5,000 tribal villagers were forcibly converted from 1999 to 2001.[7] These forcible conversions to Christianity, sometimes including the use of "rape as a means of intimidation," were noted by academics outside of India in 2007.[5]

In early 2000, 16 Bengali Hindus were killed by the NLFT at Gourangatilla. On 20 May 2000, the NLFT killed 25 Bengali Hindus at the Bagber refugee camp.[8] In August 2000, a tribal Hindu spiritual leader, Shanti Kali, was shot dead by about ten NLFT guerrillas who said it wanted to convert all people in the state to Christianity.[9] In December 2000, Labh Kumar Jamatia, a religious leader of the state's second largest Hindu group, was kidnapped by the NLFT, and found dead in a forest in Dalak village in southern Tripura. According to police, rebels from the NLFT wanted Jamatia to convert to Christianity, but he refused.[10] A local Marxist tribal leader, Kishore Debbarma, was clubbed to death in Tripura's Sadar by militants from the Biswamohan faction of the NLFT in May 2005.[11]

In 2001, there were 826 reported terrorist attacks in Tripura, in which 405 people lost their lives and 481 kidnappings were made by the NLFT and related organisations such as the Christian All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTP).[12] Nagmanlal Halam, secretary of the Noapara Baptist Church in Tripura, was arrested for and confessed, under torture from police, to providing munitions and financial aid to the NLFT from 1998 until 2000.[1]

The BBC reported in 2005 that independent investigations as well as confessions from surrendered members showed that the NLFT had been making and selling pornography to finance their activities. This includes DVDs of pornographic films made by the group with tribal men and women kidnapped and forced to participate in sex acts while being filmed. The movies are dubbed into various languages and sold illegally throughout the region for a profit. Statements from former members and one report state that the NLFT has a history of sexually abusing tribal women.[13]

According to the Institute for Conflict Management, approximately 90% of the NLFT's administration are Christians.[3]

The NLFT was originally started by Dhananjoy Reang in March of 1989. Reang was removed from his position by a coup in 1993.[14] After the coup, the group was briefly led by Nayanbasi Jamatiya, and then Biswamohan Debbarma took command, but some continued to follow Nayanbasi.

Cited causes of internal conflicts[3] include the reluctance of Biswamohan Debbarma's Central Executive Committee to nominate Joshua Debbarma as the King of ‘Tripura Kingdom’; misappropriation of funds by senior leaders; lavish lifestyles led by the senior leadership; and forcible conversion of tribal cadres/civilians to Christianity.

Other leaders of the original NLFT included ‘Vice President’ Kamini Debbarma, ‘Publicity Secretary’ Binoy Debbarma, ‘Chief of Army’ Dhanu Koloi, and ‘Finance Secretary’ Bishnu Prasad Jamatiya.

The group has been banned from the Indian government since the Unlawful Activities Act of 1967. Therefore, the group operates from its headquarters in Khagrachari, a district in Bangladesh around 45 km from Simanapur.[20] The National Liberation Front of Tripura has the ability to utilize this 856 km of the border that is unfenced and susceptible to invasion.[21]

The National Liberation Front of Tripura has conducted 81 attacks on various locations in South Asia and specifically in Tripura.[22] Of these 81 attacks, handguns and firearms have been the most common weapon.

The attacks that have been carried out by the NLFT have not exceeded 25 deaths. The majority of their attacks have been on citizens rather than the government although the group’s main opponent is the Indian government.

A common ideology within the NLFT is Tripuri Nationalism. This has two components: a Tripura state that is for only the native citizens, and the Bengalis that inhabit Tripura have no political rights or power. Among the leadership and followers of the NLFT, there are a few common objectives that come to the surface when doing analysis on this group.

1. To liberate Tripura from the union of India
2. To deport all foreigners who entered into Tripura after 1956.
3. To restore alienated tribal lands[23]

Tripura Peace Accord is the tripartite accord signed-in on 10 August 2019 by the Government of India, Government of Tripura and the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) to end the insurgency.

The tripartite memorandum of understanding was signed by Satyendra Garg, Joint Secretary (Northeast) of Ministry of Home Affairs, Kumar Alok, Additional Chief Secretary (Home), Tripura and Sabir Kumar Debbarma and Kajal Debbarma of NLFT.[24]

The NLFT has its own flag which consists of three colors: green, white, and red. The green portion of the flag symbolizes sovereignty over Tripura, the land to which they lay claim. The white portion of the flag signifies the peace they desire to. The color red represents the revolution and the blood that has been shed in the name of their revolution. The final part of the flag is the star which acts as the guiding light for the Borok during this struggle.[25]

• Christian terrorism
• Insurgency in Northeast India
• Separatist movements of India
• Insurgent groups in Northeast India
• Tripura Baptist Christian Union
• Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura
• List of terrorist organisations in India