Award-winning writer Indira Goswami's meetings with the Prime Minister on 19 November signified that the writer has been successful in attracting the attention of the government to the serious problem of insurgency in Assam. This was hailed as a path-breaking initiative by initiating talks with the proscribed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA). However, the end to this initiative came abruptly. It is now certain that encounters between the ULFA and the government will take place in the jungles and not the negotiation tables.

Goswami appealed to the Prime Minister to initiate a process of dialogue on the outfit's demand of sovereignty for Assam, but the Prime Minister put to rest any such speculation, and said in Guwahati on 22 November that "If they shun violence, then I will invite them for talks but violence and talks cannot go on simultaneously." His subsequent invitation to the ULFA to join a peace process evoked little response. Responding to the Singh's categorical rejection of ULFA's sovereignty demand, on 22 November, the ULFA chief Paresh Baruah said, "The comments made by the PM was not unexpected and not different from that made by his predecessors. It is evident that the Centre's colonial policy will continue."

Negotiations with the outfit is a key issue that confronts civil society and the political class in Assam. There is little difference in the people that dialogue is the only way forward in this war, which both parties have failed to win for more than 20 years. In spite of a dominant view in favour of a dialogue process in the State, no move in this direction has proved successful.

In 2004, Assam has witnessed 324 insurgency related deaths until October which includes 184 civilians, 21 security forces and 119 militants. ULFA was either responsible or involved in the majority of these attacks. Thus, going by the nature of attacks, a mood for peace has been difficult to locate in the psyche of the outfit's leadership, most of whom are believed to be in Bangladesh.

Goswami's effort was preceded by similar moves by different organisations in the State. In September 2004, the Assam Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chhatra Parishad (AJYCP), from which most of the senior ULFA leaders are drawn, initiated a Jatiya Mahasabha (People's Council) on the dialogue process. The ULFA statement released to the media hailed this effort. The conclusion reached after two days was overwhelmingly in favour of dialogue in which the government was expected to take the initiative. The 'mahasabha' called for a unilateral ceasefire by the government, and asked the ULFA to give up violence. None of these demands have been fulfilled.

The AJYCP initiative was followed by several meetings organised by the intelligentsia, and research organisations in Guwahati, which reiterated the negotiations demand. Notably, the All Assam Students' Union (AASU) opined in favour of a symbolic 100-hours unilateral ceasefire by the government. While the government was in no mood to concede these demands, the ULFA was critical of such multiple forums and in a media statement, in the last week of October, Paresh Baruah asked these organisations to desist from such efforts.

What differentiated Indira Goswami, who appeared to have the approval of the ULFA for her efforts, from previous initiatives was her conviction in the sovereignty formula. On a number of occasions, Goswami said that there was no harm in talking on the issue of sovereignty of Assam. Apparently, the ULFA realised that this could be their best bet to push forward their key demand. Irrespective of the support ULFA generates in civil society or common people in the State, the issue of 'sovereignty' remains a matter of bitter contention. The outfit is clearly reluctant to give up this demand and insists that a viable dialogue process can only begin when the government agrees to talk on the key issue of 'sovereignty'. That remains a stumbling block.

Indira Goswami claimed to have convinced the ULFA chief Paresh Baruah to put a halt to the ULFA's violent attacks for two weeks. However, the Prime Minister's position on the sovereignty issue provided momentum for the ULFA's attacks. On 25 November, the outfit was involved in four explosions in various districts of the State. Intelligence reports suggest that ULFA cadres have assembled in the forest areas of Arunachal Pradesh to plan and carry out attacks in the adjoining districts of upper Assam, which indicates that the move towards peace has failed again.