By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: The stand-off between the police and the protesters continued for the third day on Saturday with no let-up in the law and order situation.
However, the district administration relaxed curfew in localities under Lumdiengjri police station from 8 am to 3 pm, Deputy Commissioner PS Dkhar confirmed.
The localities are Jaiaw, Mawkhar, Umsohsun, Riatsamthiah, Wahingdoh, Mission Compound, Mawprem, Lumdiengjri, Lama Villa, Qualapatty, Wahthapbru, Sunny Hill, Cantonment, Mawlong Hat, including Cantonment Beat House areas (excluding localities beyond the Umshyrpi bridge).
Earlier, curfew was imposed from 4 am in these localities.
However, the night curfew from 10 pm to 5 am will continue in the entire city.
Earlier on Saturday evening, after a meeting with the chief minister and Cabinet ministers, headmen, women’s groups, senior citizens and youth bodies of Mawkhar, Jaiaw, Wahingdoh, Umsohsun, Riatsamthiah, Jaiaw Pdeng and Mission Compound, assured the government that they would extend full cooperation to bring back normalcy.
In fact, the delegation assured that after the meeting they would go and talk to the agitators about the successful talks and that there was no need to protest since most of the demands made by various organisations had already been met.
The situation had improved on Saturday
morning but turned ugly again in the afternoon when protesters clashed with police at Motphran.
Later, MLA Adelbert Nongrum and the headmen tried to convince the protesters to stop violence. However, there was no positive response from the agitators.
“We conveyed to them to allow the government to do its job of carrying out negotiation to shift Punjabi Lane,” Nongrum said.
Several women, who had gathered at Mawkhar, asked police personnel not to enter their localities as the bursting of teargas shells have affected them.
Earlier, the headmen too had spoken about the hardships faced by the locals and genuine residents of the area and urged the government to immediately ask the police force to not enter the localities and fire tear gas inside people’s compound or houses.
Home Minister James Sangma informed them that the police force had exercised maximum restraint and would continue to do so. He also told the delegation that as per the demands made by the agitators, one person directly involved in the assault had already been arrested on Friday afternoon and that he was currently in police custody for further investigation.
East Khasi Hills SP Davis Marak said around 18-19 protesters were arrested. Several cops have been injured and one fractured his hand. Besides, a petrol bomb was thrown at one of the cops at Motphran.
“It appears that somebody is instigating the crowd and somebody is fuelling fire into the clashes,” said Marak, adding that the situation had not improved from Friday.
