From Our Correspondent
TURA: Several dozen people had a providential escape when a hand grenade lobbed by suspected militants inside Jadigittim market in South Garo Hills on Thursday afternoon failed to explode.
The United A’chik Liberation Army (UALA) headed by one Norrok X Momin is the prime suspect in the incident.
The incident took place at approximately 12 noon when a youth dressed as a labourer walked up to a wine store and lobbed the Chinese hand grenade inside before fleeing from the scene.
Although the device failed to explode it sent people scurrying for cover. This is the second grenade attack on a wine store in Jadigittim market of Nangalbnibra in less than a month.
On August 20th, a similar attack took place in the same market in which suspected militants targeted another liquor store.
In that incident another militant dressed as a labourer threw the grenade before fleeing. The device exploded sending shrapnel all around injuring a civilian.
Thursday’s attack failed to meet the militants’ objective as the grenade did not explode even as a passing police patrol party gave chase to a suspect who managed to give them the slip.
Security forces cordoned off the area and the live grenade was removed by bomb experts before being safely detonated outside the town.
South Garo Hills police strongly suspect the involvement of the recently formed UALA outfit, headed by a former action commander of the breakaway ANVC-B outfit, in the incident.
The UALA, headed by Singbirth N Marak alias Norrok (Hell) X Momin, has been behind a large scale extortion drive in the coal belt region of Nangalbibra and Jadigittim region. Demand notes to the tune of several lakhs have reportedly been served on coal dealers and exporters of the
region by the UALA.
The outfit had previously sought ‘tax’ from a wine store and failing to receive payment lobbed the grenade, last month.
The UALA militant chief is wanted in the daring attack on Williamnagar jail, earlier this year, in which two unarmed jail officials, assistant jailor Neil Warjri and warder Sarai Singh Thabah, were killed in cold blood.
