SHILLONG: HANM president Lamphrang Kharbani and four others, who were arrested from Mawkyrwat on May 2, have been remanded in police custody for 14 days from May 8.
Informing this here on Saturday, South West Khasi Hills Superintendent of Police, Debangshu D Sangma, said police were now trying to establish links between the arrested HANM activists and the banned militant outfit HNLC.
“We know that they have links with HNLC but we need to prove it,” he said and added that the arrested people
did not reveal anything about their nexus with HNLC during their police custody.
According to Sangma, the fact that HNLC called for a shutdown demanding release of the arrested people confirmed that they were having links with the outfit.
Kharbani and four others were arrested from Rangthong village, South West Khasi Hills, when they were on their way to Shillong. A large sum of money was seized from one of the five arrested persons. The police suspected that the amount was meant to be handed over to HNLC.
Police also had specific inputs that Kharbani had recently gone to Bangladesh to meet top leaders of the HNLC.
It was also revealed that among those arrested along with Kharbani, one was a former member of the banned outfit.
