MAWKYRWAT/ NONGSTOIN: The outlawed Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) suffered a big blow when two of its cadres, including a senior member who was earlier arrested and booked under the Meghalaya Preventive Detention Act (MPDA) and had served a three year jail term at Williamnagar Jail, were arrested from Mawkyrwat area, South West Khasi Hills District, along with two ) over-ground workers.
Speaking to The Shillong Times, Superintendent of Police (SP), South West Khasi Hills, D. Sangma, informed that the arrest took place on Wednesday evening at Jakrem village, 6 Km from Mawkyrwat, while the police were conducting vehicle checks.
“The police were conducting a routine search of a bus that was coming from Shillong and heading towards Mawkyrwat. Suddenly they found demand notes from one bag which led to the arrest of the two HNLC cadres,” the SP said.
The two arrested HNLC cadres were identified as Foldenstar Lyngdoh who hails from Nonglang village, Mawkyrwat and Sakharia Basan Thongni who hails from Mawpdai village near Pynden Sohsaw.
Sakharia is a senior member of the HNLC who was arrested in 2008 and booked under MPDA where he served his term at Williamnagar Jail, the SP informed.
From their possession, the police recovered 20 demand notes, a receipt book in the name of Lion’s Sport Club and a Bangladesh SIM Card and Top-up.
The SP informed that from their leads, the police arrested two suspected over-ground workers of the outfit on the same evening from Nonglang village, Mawkyrwat.
They were identified as Pynshailang Snaitang and Frederick Syiemiong from Nonglang village.
“We are not certain whether the two are HNLC members or just over-ground workers, but both of them have a close relationship with the high-ranking members of the HNLC,” the SP said, adding that investigation is going on.
A local court, meanwhile, on Thursday remanded the four to seven days of police custody.