From C K Nayak
On Board Indian Air Force Special Aircraft: While lot of noise has been made out of the President Pranab Mukherjee’s comment on role of the NGOs and the need to talk to them, sources close to the President’s office made it clear that the statement was in general in nature and had nothing to do with the current situation in Meghalaya.
Talking to The Shillong Times during the return flight back to Delhi, the sources said that the President’s comments were general and not a reflection of the present situation in Meghalaya where bandh was called during the visit of Mukherjee. “Today’s whole programme in NEHU including the 21st convocation was a great success and attended by a large number of students, teachers and varsity staff , the sources said.
Some newspaper reports have said the President’s comment on importance of civil societies and need for talks was in reference to the ongoing impasse in the Hill State over inner line permit.
During the return flight, the President informally met the accompanying journalists and spend some time with them. The sources also made it clear that the President spoke against violence in the Northeastern region when a group of students from Assam and Manipur met him at Rashtrapati Bhawan two days before his visit to Shillong.