Number of arrested leaders, cadres goes up to 11
SHILLONG, Aug 17: Police on Thursday arrested the self-styled area commander of the newly-floated militant group called National Liberation Council of Nongkyndong (NLCN) from Iewduh, taking the number of arrests to 11.
Police had earlier arrested 10 members of the militant outfit including a juvenile, who is a class 10 student, and suspected to be the self-styled chairman of the NLCN.
‘It is suspected that the juvenile is related to HNLC general secretary Sainkupar Nongtraw. We have sent the juvenile to a juvenile home,” police said.
Among those arrested include a woman who is three months’ pregnant and is currently admitted at Ganesh Das Hospital. Police said the woman worked as a recruiter and record keeper of the NLCN.
On Thursday, a local court remanded five cadres of the NLCN in eight days of police custody. The other four militants, who are yet to be shifted from Jowai to Shillong, will be produced before the court on Friday, police said.
Speaking to one of the news channels on Thursday, a woman who identified one of the arrested cadres as her son, refused to believe that he could have been involved in such nefarious activities.
“There was no sign that my son would be involved with any militant group. The whole locality is surprised since my son would always remain at home,” she said.
She said her son would play games on the mobile for hours, and added that she had often scolded him for his behaviour.
The woman said her son had been working as a construction labourer for the past four years.
The contractor who employed the youth expressed surprise at the development and said he would work for six days a week and was quite dedicated to his work.
“After the day’s work, I would often see him playing PUBG on his mobile,” the contractor added.
On Monday, police had conducted an operation and arrested 10 members of the outfit from various locations in the Eastern Range, including one juvenile.
DIG (Eastern Range), Davis Nestell Rangsa Marak had said that the arrested persons include the self-styled chairman, commander-in-chief, general secretary and area commanders of West Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills, recruiter and record-keeper of NLCN and three cadres.
Marak said the intention to float the new militant group was to wage war against the government and to commit unlawful activities like procurement of arms and ammunition, extortion, recruiting armed cadres, training of armed cadres, establishing armed terrorist camps and conspiring to commit terrorist acts.
As per the police, NLCN was allegedly floated by some Khasi-Jaintia youths.a