TURA: Two police vehicles with armed security personnel that was travelling to Williamnagar town narrowly escaped an IED blast triggered by suspected GNLA militants at Chisobibra village on Tuesday morning.
The incident took place at Chisobibra, 8 kms from the district town, when six state police personnel led by a sub-Inspector and two drivers were heading to Williamnagar from Tura to bring back an arrested GNLA cadre.
As the two Maruti Gypsies were approaching the Chisobibra wooden bridge a powerful explosion took place barely meters from the two vehicles. While the blast missed the two vehicles, the rear gypsy’s windshield was damaged in the impact of a stone that hit it as the blast occurred. None of the occupants in the vehicle were harmed and the bridge also escaped damage.
East Garo Hills district police chief J F K Marak said that the GNLA militants opened a few rounds of fire from the thick jungle nearby before fleeing.
“It was the handiwork of GNLA area commander Jimmy. The IED was detonated from about a hundred meters with the help of a 12 volt battery. We have recovered about 100 meters of the wire and the battery,” said the police chief while speaking to The Shillong Times.
The police team from Tura was heading into Williamnagar to bring back under armed escort a GNLA militant identified as Rahul in conection with some militancy cases. The hardcore GNLA cadre Rahul had been arrested in North Garo Hills district sometime ago and was lodged in Williamnagar district jail.
Police have said that the IED attack at Chisobibra was similar to the one trigged by the same group in Nengkhra, on the road to Nangalbibra, several weeks ago. In that operation too suspected GNLA militants had used a hundred meter long fuse wire and a 12 volt battery to trigger the blast. The blast at Nengkhra was targeted on a passing armored carrier truck of the police which escaped the explosion with minor damage.