Imphal, April 6: The United Liberation Front of Manipur (UNLF) today said it was protecting the Bengalis of Jiribam from a ?terrorist organisation? and also denied issuing any quit notices to the community.
Reacting to a report published today under the headline ?UNLF diktat prompts exodus, villagers flee Manipur sub-division?, the outfit said it has ?neither issued any quit notice nor imposed any tax on the Bengali community settled in Jiribam?.
?On the contrary, it is the UNLF that has been protecting the minority communities in Jiribam, including the Bengalis, from the relentless persecution of a particular terrorist organisation. The Bengali community in Jiribam themselves will speak for this,? a clarification issued by the UNLF?s ?department of publicity? said through e-mail.
The outfit said linking the ?exodus? of more than 130 people belonging to the Bengali community to ?relentless persecution? by the UNLF was ?baseless, malicious and misleading?.
The report had quoted refugees settled in Lakhipur in Assam?s Cachar district as claiming that the UNLF had imposed ?monthly household taxes? and issued ?quit notices? to the Bengali farmers settled in Jiribam.