Property worth Rs 5 lakh gutted in Ri Bhoi; Assam scribes assaulted

NONGPOH: As many as seven shops were gutted in a late-night fire at Baridua in Ri Bhoi on Friday.
A few media persons from Pratidin Time were assaulted for recording the incident at a time when people were struggling to douse the fire. Angry youth snatched a camera, one halogen light and one gold chain from a reporter named Trilok Singh who sustained injuries and is in hospital.
Village headman Ioanis Narleng said the fire started around 1 am on Friday but the exact cause of the fire was not known. Police said property worth Rs 5.3 lakh was destroyed.
Two among the gutted shops belonged to tribal villagers, Mitilda Lyndem and Merilinda Majaw, and the remaining were owned by non-tribals.
“The incident has caused a great loss to the shop owners as all their shops were burnt down to ashes,” Narleng said, adding that the quick response service from Assam had saved the other adjoining shops.
The Meghalaya police from Khanapara inspected the spot along with their Assam counterpart.