NONGSTOIN: The recent killing of one of the members of the United North East Liberation Army (UNELA) at Nongshram in West Khasi Hills District by police personnel did not seem to stop the cadres, who appear to be firm in their resolve to create a niche for themselves.
Reliable sources informed that many of the coal traders, shop keepers and even Government servants at Shallang were served demand notes by the outfit. The notes served were of Rs 20,000 each.
Police personnel including the SP, West Khasi Hills District and the DSP have rushed to Shallang to take stock of the situation.
The UNELA, believed to be an Assam based outfit, had made its presence felt at Shallang on April 17. Out of the four cadres of the outfit, one was gunned down by the police at Nongshram while the other three managed to escape. The corpse of the killed cadre was identified as Md Abul Mandal of Goalpara, Assam.
Coal traders at Shallang are in a fix as to how they would make the payment, as after the NGT ban on mining, they were suffering heavy financial losses. The NGT ban had also affected the Shallang market and all other businesses in the area.
Shallang area is a coal belt area and depends entirely on the coal quarries. It may also be mentioned that this is the first instance where Governement servants were served with demand notes at Shallang.
