Deportation of Ulfa general secretary Anup Chetia may be delayed for few more days with Dhaka yet to finalise the date to hand over the custody of insurgent leaders to its counterpart in New Delhi.
Disclosing that there were some issues on which Dhaka wanted specific assurances, authoritative security sources in the home ministry told this newspaper that India has agreed to extradite at least two notorious Bangladeshi criminals who were languishing in Indian jails in exchange of Mr Chetia.
Informing that Dhaka had sought custody of Subrata Bain and Sajjad Hossain in exchange for Chetia, security sources said that India has already committed to ensure concurrence of Indian Parliament on land-swapping deal with Dhaka.
Sources said Dhaka also wanted assurances on firming up of schedules for signing of the Teesta water-sharing pact. However, sources said that it may not delay the deportation of Mr Chetia.
Pointing out that ruling Awami League government of Bangladesh was insisting on custody of two criminals, security sources said that one of them, Mr Bain, is an accused in the 2004 grenade attack on a rally of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The home ministry had announced earlier this month that top Ulfa leader may be deported to India by July 15. Indicating that Mr Chetia may be handed over anytime next week, security sources said that Union home ministry was expecting a formal date of handing over in a day or two.
The Ulfa general secretary was arrested in Bangladesh in 1997. He had sought political asylum in Bangladesh but subsequently agreed to join the peace-process initiated with pro-talk faction of Ulfa led by its chairman Arbinda Rajkhowa in Assam.
Mr Rajkhowa claimed that Chetia would also be the part of ongoing peace-process to resolve the decade-old insurgency in Assam.