Shillong, May 20: NCP general secretary P A Sangma today said he was
working as a 'facilitator' of talks between the Centre and some
insurgent groups of Meghalaya with the knowledge of the Union
government.

''I am doing my bit as a facilitator to bring some insurgent groups
for a dialogue with the Centre and I reiterate that I am doing it
with the knowledge of the government of India'', Sangma, a Lok Sabha
member from Meghalaya, told reporters here without naming the
militant outfits.

He said if any politician took any initiative to bring insurgent
groups to negotiating table for a dialogue with a view to restore
peace in the state or country, it could not be termed as 'nexus'
between the two.

The government should be clear about its definition of 'nexus', the
former Lok Sabha speaker said in an apparent reference to Meghalaya
government's objection to the status of a 'facilitator'.

Meghalaya home minister R G Lyngdo had recently said the state had
written a letter to the Centre seeking to know if Sangma or Mizoram
Chief Minister Zoramathanga or a former minister were 'authorised' to
facilitate talks with the banned Achik National Volunteer Council
(ANVC) militants of the Garo hills region.

If the Meghalaya government or a minister of the Centre did not know
the process ''that is not my fault, but the Prime Minister is in the
knowledge of it'', he claimed.

The MP said the Central government perhaps did not feel it necessary
to inform the state about the peace process at this stage, Sangma
said.