TURA: The Wednesday’s arrest of two leaders of Garo Hills State Movement Committee (GHSMC) for extending support to NPP leader PA Sangma for taking up the agenda of Garoland is seen as politically motivated at the instructions of the ruling Congress.
The move of the Government to arrest the leaders has come at a time when PA Sangma is campaigning on the agenda of Garoland.
(GHSMC) has strongly condemned the arrest of its Chairman, Nikman Ch Marak and its Co Chairman, Balkarin Ch Marak who also happens to be the General Secretary of the TGCSU by police on Wednesday.
According to the General Secretary of the GHSMC, Augustine Marak the two were on way from Tikrikilla to Tura to attend to a Court summon the next day (March 28) when they were arrested at Damalgre allegedly without any official order from the Court. He said that the summon order to attend Court had been given on November 19, 2013 and that the two had been complying with the order and had already attended Court 3 or 4 times.
“Our members have been obeying the Court summon since it was given and the Chief Judicial Magistrate had assured that bail would be given on 28thMarch in the presence of their respective sureties. Then why has the arrests been made without any arrest warrant,” questioned the GHSMC general secretary.
Augustine also claimed that when contacted officials from the police department informed that the two had been arrested on strict orders from the top for their involvement in the Tura Civil Hospital mob violence and in relation to an absconding case. However, he said that the question of their involvement in the Tura Civil Hospital mob violence or of absconding does not arise as the two were out of station at the time. He claimed that while Nikman was in Ganak Gittim, Tikrikilla Balkarin was in Chokpot, Kakkija during the time of the incident.
Pointing out that no such arrests had been made during the four months since the Court summon was given on November 19 last year the GHSMC leader questioned why the arrests had taken place just before the upcoming LS elections while slightly hinting that the reason might have been a politically motivated one.
Interestingly, the GHSMC had just recently announced in the media that it would support P A Sangma and the NPP in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections scheduled for April 9.
“We announced our support to P A Sangma and the NPP in the upcoming LS Polls because he assured that he would take up the Garoland issue. It is not only the NPP but we will give our support to any party who supports the Garoland issue,” the GHSMC leader said. Meanwhile, Augustine informed that it was at present pursuing the matter legally in Court but warned that it would resort to a strong agitation if justice is not given or if there was any kind of ill-treatment on their arrested members