GSU leaders arrested for involvement
From Our Correspondent
TURA: East Garo Hills police intercepted a vehicle carrying seven lakh rupees that was meant for GNLA ‘army chief’ Sohan D Shira at Chisobibra on Sunday afternoon and arrested three persons among whom two happen to be Garo Students’ Union (GSU) leaders from Mendipather zone.
Working on intelligence inputs about the shipment of a huge amount of money from Mendipather area towards Williamnagar meant for the Garo militant outfit, special police pickets were set up at various routes connecting district headquarters Williamnagar.
The police team intercepted a Maruti car (AS-01-AB 3734) with three occupants at Chisobibra, 7 kms from Williamnagar.
On inspecting the vehicle they came across a polythene bag that was stashed with seven lakh rupees in the denominations of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes. Inside the vehicle was the GSU Mendipather unit president Silchang G Momin (31) and Damas unit president Cizaral D Shira (30). Both were arrested along with the driver Sabin Boro.
On questioning the duo admitted that the money was being ferried for the GNLA from a municipal board toll gate at Mendipather market.
The GNLA had, sometime ago, demanded extortion money from the gate operators. Senior GNLA militant and deputy area commander of Resu-Mendi Rahul had reportedly been in touch via telephone demanding that the toll gate operators come up with the amount at the earliest.
Rahul was a former ANVC militant who joined the LAEF outfit of former police commando Peter Marak. After the death of Peter Marak and the collapse of the outfit he enrolled into the GNLA shortly after its formation, police inform.
To avoid police detection the couriers had used a Maruti car with Assam registration number plate. The vehicle belongs to one Bishnu Sharma of Dudhnoi.
While the shipment of the money was broken police were unable to nab those who were supposed to receive the amount on behalf of Sohan D Shira. The militants never gave their final destination to the couriers preferring to instead relay messages one step at a time.
The militant outfit had demanded ten lakh rupees from the operators of the toll gate but eventually settled for seven lakh rupees given that business has been down due to the monsoons and coal export is exported to pick up only by the end of October.