JOWAI: The Ummulong police have summoned 20 villagers to the beat house for recording their statements in the wake of police complaints lodged against them for allegedly trespassing into the houses of the headman, village chairman and the village secretary of Ummulong during a protest march recently.
Hundreds of residents accompanied the villagers who received the summon letters from the police to the beat house.
“We have done nothing wrong. We are just expressing our freedom and our rights in accordance with the Constitution of our democratic country. We have the right to protest against our headman, SS Langi and other village elders who have misused their powers,” said Wanda Lamare, one of the 20 summoned to the police beat house.
She informed that about 200 residents of the village took part in a peaceful procession at Ummulong on September 29 as a mark of protest against the headman for not calling any general meeting for the past three years.
“The headman, SS Langi, the village chairman, Briwon Pohshna and the village secretary, Pyrkhatbha Lamare, filed complaints against us alleging that we had trespassed into their houses,” said Cambel Myrboh, a youth from the village.
According to Lamare, the group who took part in the procession never trespassed into their houses or threatened the headman, chairman and village secretary.
“The rally was a peaceful one and it was witnessed by media persons and also by the police including the additional superintendent of police and deputy superintendent of police of West Jaintia Hills”, said Mo Passah, another villager.
“The procession was along the internal PWD road not as alleged by the Rangbah shnong,” she added.
Based on the names mentioned by the three complainants, it was claimed that most of the villagers summoned by the police on Tuesday were not even present during the rally.
“I am a government servant and I know very much that I should not take part in the rally. On that day I was not present at the rally but the three village elders had mentioned my name in their complaints just to tarnish my image,” said H. Lamare.
It may be mentioned that the villagers have accused the headman of misusing the MGNREGS funds meant for the village and that he was yet to call a general meeting or dorbar for the past three years.
The district administration was yet to take any action against the headman and the chairman of the VEC and other VEC members despite a public hearing pledging stern action within a week’s time after the report is prepared.
