By Our Reporter
Shillong: The Steering Committee Against the Murder of Democracy (SCAMOD), an umbrella organisation for several NGOs including the Khasi Students Union, Federation of Khasi Jaintia and Garo People (FKJGP) Synjuk Ki Seng Samla Shnong (SSSS), Informed Conscious and Responsible Existence (ICARE), Civil Society Women’s Organisation (CSWO- Agnes Kharshiing) and Hynniewtrep Indigenous Women’s Society (HIWS), came together to demand an enquiry into the May 31, 2009 jailbreak case where Fullmoon Dhar a hardened criminal was allegedly released through the connivance of jail staff and some senior jail officials. Dhar was later eliminated in a fake encounter near Jowai.
It was alleged that nominated member of the Jaintia Hills District Council and coal baron, Thomas Nongtdu was involved in the jailbreak and that he financed Full Moon Dhar to carry out nefarious activities in the coal belt. Nongtdu was arrested by the police for questioning but was hurriedly released because of his political clout.
SCAMOD gave the terms of reference for the enquiry commission headed by retired Judge of Gauhati High Court, Justice D Biswas. One of those terms was to go into the details of Nongtdu’s hasty release and his nexus with Full Moon Dhar and the Shillong jail break case.
Justice Biswas resigned from the Enquiry Commission on April 10, 2010 after being appointed Lokayukta of Assam. He was replaced by Justice SP Rajkhowa. After a protracted hearing Justice Rajkhowa decided to close the matter.
But SCAMOD petitioned the Shillong Bench of Gauhati High Court stating that more witnesses had to be examined. The Court will hold its next hearing on March 9 to give a final verdict on whether the Commission should examine four more witnesses in the jailbreak case.
In October 2011, the court had issued an interim stay on the decision of the Commission to speed up the inquiry without giving time to examine four more witnesses.
Recently, a war of words between the former president of CSWO, Irene Hujon who had resigned from the organisation to fight the 2008 elections and Agnes Kharshiing who was elected after Hujon’s resignation, has threatened to jeopardize the SCAMOD stance as Kharshiing has admittedly taken money from Thomas Nongtdu for various reasons.
This came to light in the recent spat between Hujon and Kharshiing. Those interested in the final outcome of the Shillong jailbreak case now wonder how a member of the SCAMOD can accept money from one of the prime accused in the case.
Kharshiing recently told the media, “Nongtdu was just a scapegoat in the case and I came to know this when we have strictly followed his daily works and went through the RTI”, Kharshiing even claimed that the former MDC of JHADC is being used in the case as he is uneducated.
Kharshiing now seems bent on dragging the name of Union Minister of State for Water Resources & Minority Affairs Vincent H Pala who she alleges brought fake notes from Siliguri and had deputed Full Moon Dhar for training in the NSCN (IM) camp..
Earlier, SCAMOD was also dragged into another controversial issue. While several civil society groups protested the proposed Assembly site at Tara Ghar citing that it would turn into a concrete jungle in an already polluted city, SCAMOD decided to give the green signal to the project saying that not many trees would be hacked. ICARE a prominent member of SCAMOD walked out of the organisation on this issue.
Following reports on the CSWO president Agnes Kharshiing’s involvement in taking money from former MDC of JHADC, Thomas Nongtdu, working president of FKJGP, Joe Marwein said they do not know how far the statement is true. “This will eventually become known to all the members of SCAMOD when we meet shortly.” He also said that following news reports, he had contacted other members of the SCAMOD to discuss the matter urgently. W Nongbet, General Secretary SSSS also said they would require a detailed clarification on the report that had appeared recently, which has given a wrong impression on the works of the SCAMOD. “Till now, we haven’t met for the SCAMOD meeting and it will be better to comment after the facts come out at the meeting’, he said adding that as members of SCAMOD, they want the real picture of the whole situation. Nongbet also informed that if Kharshiing is found to have misled the organisation, then “action will be taken “.
Hamlet Dohling, former general secretary, KSU, reiterated what the SSSS and FKJGP said. “We have to dig out the truth and require a clarification from Agnes Kharshiing on the revelations made to the press recently”, he said adding that for now, they can’t do anything until a meeting is convened and the matter is made clear to all its members. Meanwhile, ICARE president, Toki Blah has refused to comment stating that ICARE is no longer associated with SCAMOD. “I don’t know what the members are doing as ICARE has left the group following the Tara Ghar issue”, Blah stated.
For now it appears that SCAMOD is on the back-foot as Government counsel KTS Tulsi is likely to use this material evidence of money changing hands between Kharshiing and Nongtdu against the former. Tulsi will use the oldest legal cliché that SCAMOD did not come to seek justice with clean hands.