Police directed to ensure peace
SHILLONG: The State Government has directed police to take measures to ensure that villagers residing along the inter-State border with Assam are not subjected to any atrocities or harassment. It had been decided that home guard and civil defence personnel would be re-deployed at Kyrshai village in the West Khasi Hills, close to the inter-State border with Assam, State home Minister Roshan Warjiri said.
“We are concerned about the developments along the inter-State border. We would not like to see our people being harassed either by the Assam police or by any militant group,” the Home Minister said while taking to newsmen after meeting a KSU delegation in Shillong on Friday.
She informed that the State Government had asked officials to continue to engage with their counterparts in Assam to ensure that peace prevailed along the inter-State border.
“The nodal officers at the level of the Deputy Commissioners of both the States are scheduled to meet in Guwahati to take stock of the prevailing situation in May 30,” Warjri said. She indicated that the engagements at the higher level between the Chief Secretaries of the two neighbouring States would also continue.
KSU general secretary Augester Jrywa said that the student body was seriously concerned with the frequent incidents of harassment of Meghalaya people living in the border areas by Assam police personnel at Moolber (East Jaintia Hills) and Umtlieh (Ri-Bhoi district).
The KSU leader said the issue had been raised in the past by KSU with the previous Government and it had been agreed upon in principle that there was the need to set up police outposts all along the sensitive border areas which were shared between the two stats to protect Meghalaya people from persecution. He failed to understand why the important decision had not yet been implemented.
“We would want the State Government immediately to set up police outposts all along the sensitive areas bordering Assam within a time frame for the protection and welfare of our people residing in these areas,” Jyrwa said.
KSU also demanded that the government take immediate action against Karbi millitant outfits active in Umtlieh, Ri Bhoi district, involved in extortion from \Khasi people by serving demand notes and threatening them with dire consequences if they failed to fulfill their demand.
“We strongly feel that the suppression and harassment by these elements on our people will only lead to communal conflict and bad blood between the two communities. It is the sworn duty of the State Government to protect the life and property of the people in the area by providing permanent armed police personnel for the safety and security of our people and to eliminate these unwanted elements,” he said.
“We hope that you will immediately intervene and act on this highly crucial and sensitive issue without fail. keeping in mind the welfare and best interest of our people residing in the border areas,” the KSU general secretary said.
Kyrshai village: “The forces were withdrawn from Kyrshai village due to some confusion within the Government. We have directed Director General of Home Guards and Civil Defence to deploy the forces at the earliest,” Warjri said.
She said that she had been informed that the personnel were already on their way to Kyrshai.
The KSU general secretary said that he was surprised by the decision of the Government to remove the Kyrshai police outpost.
“The police outpost was placed in the area to protect the people from continued harassment by Assam police personnel and the repeated attempts of the Assam Government to encroach into our State,” Jyrwa said while adding that the police outpost provided a sense of security and stability in the area, so the decision to remove the Kyrshai police outpost was illogical.