one apprehended individual on Thursday. (ST)
From Our Correspondent
TURA: The second in command of the GNLA’s central command has been shot dead in an encounter with East Garo Hills police on Friday morning at Bansamgre village on the way from Tura to Williamnagar.
Meghalaya Police’s SWAT commandos with CoBRA personnel of CRPF pinned down the central command area commander Azan Marak alias Jimmy of Bolkingre along with a nine-member armed group atop a hill overlooking Bansamgre village shortly after 7 AM.
The encounter is the third incident to have taken place within the last three days along the state road connecting West with East Garo Hills district. It was also the longest gun battle in recent times as the militants returned fire for well over three hours.
Despite being surrounded, the militants refused to surrender and continued to return fire on the approaching security forces. The gun battle finally ended with the killing of GNLA lance corporal Pilon M Sangma alias Marcus shortly after 10 AM which forced the rest of the militants to flee from the site of the encounter.
Police recovered an AK 47 rifle with three magazines containing 148 rounds of live ammo, a powerful and sophisticated US made .45 Colt pistol with 17 rounds, a hand grenade and two wireless sets besides GNLA incriminating documents.
East Garo Hills police have been hot on the trail of the two GNLA leaders, Jimmy and Marcus, and both had escaped on several occasions when confronted by police.
The killing of the GNLA militant comes just a day after the district police arrested an arms dealer and seized three AK rifles along with a under barrel grenade launcher that was being shipped in from Dimapur in Nagaland for Sohan D Shira of the GNLA.
Two days earlier, GNLA deserters Silgrak D Sangma alais Kalu and Walseng Ch Marak were nabbed by police from Samanda while travelling in a hired Tata sumo vehicle to form a new outfit.