Damage suit against pro-ILP groups
SHILLONG: The Special Court of the First Class Judicial Magistrate R Rymbai has issued non-bailable arrest warrants against KSU general secretary Auguster Jyrwa and FKJGP president Joe Marwein after they failed to appear during the hearings on the damage suit filed by the Meghalaya government against them for organising series of agitations over the demand to implement ILP.
The Meghalaya government had last year filed the damage suit in the special court of Rymbai, seeking compensation of over Rs 31.09 crore from the groups for the damages and loss of private property, both individual and community-owned, and government property caused during the ILP agitation.
The government termed bandhs, road blockades and office picketing as “unconstitutional and illegal”.
When contacted, the KSU general secretary confirmed that he got a call from the police of Lumdiengjri police station.”I have been asked to report to the police station on Tuesday at 11 am,” Jyrwa said.
It may be mentioned that the last hearing on the damage suit was held on July 8 and the majority of the pressure groups including the KSU and FKJGP did not turn up.The written statements of the leaders who would appear during the next hearing scheduled for August 8 will be considered by the Court.
Initially, 14 pressure groups, including CSWO, came together to sponsor agitations to pressure the Meghalaya government to implement the permit regime under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation 1873 to check entry of outsiders into the state.
The CSWO later withdrew from the conglomeration on the grounds that it wanted to pursue the demand legally and not through agitations.
An official source said that if the concerned pressure groups do not appear again in the next hearing, the Court will proceed with the matter and decide the further course of action and subsequently, the matter will be heard ex-parte.
Earlier, the representatives of All India Garo Union and CSWO had appeared before the Special Court.