By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, March 15: East Khasi Hills Police has asserted that the HNLC orchestrated the recent IED blast at Harijan Colony from across the border in Bangladesh.
The HNLC on Thursday claimed responsibility for the IED blast at the Syndicate Bus Stand at the entrance of Harijan Colony on Saturday, and threatened to continue with its armed struggle if the state government did not complete the relocation of residents of Harijan Colony within one month.
The outfit claimed that its Budnar Shadow Squad (BSS), which operates as the special forces of the HNLC, was responsible for carrying out the blast.
It also demanded that the government should promptly withdraw the CRPF from the Colony to ensure freedom of movement for the Hynniewtrep people.
Speaking to The Shillong Times on Friday, East Khasi Hills Superintendent of Police, Rituraj Ravi said security has been strengthened in Harijan Colony following the HNLC ultimatum.
“Since they have claimed responsibility, we will now investigate the matter from that angle only,” he said even as he added that from day one itself, the modus operandi and the method indicated that the blast was carried out by HNLC
So far, six persons alleged to be workers and sleeper cell members of the HNLC have been arrested following Saturday’s blast.
Mukul hits out at NPP, says Governance not everybody’s cup of tea
In the backdrop of the recent IED blast at the entrance of Harijan Colony in Shillong and the resultant sense of insecurity among the residents, Trinamool Congress parliamentary party leader Mukul Sangma on Friday said restoring peace is never easy and governance is not everybody’s cup of tea.
“The main reason is nothing but the greed of those in authority. When greed is the main driving force to control every decision, then the priority of effective governance is not there,” Sangma told The Shillong Times.
Recalling many instances of IED blasts in the state under the National People’s Party-led MDA government, he said, “Now we all have to collectively pay the price.”
He said governance is not like running a corporate or a business house but governance is governance.
Stating that he has always talked about sustaining peace after it was restored, Sangma said, “If you revisit the preceding six years, you will see. These types of problems do not crop up overnight. They are the offshoots of long-drawn problems which unfold over a period of time.” He also said, “The multifaceted factors leading to such a situation is the culmination of a lack of hope, frustration and anger. These often manifest in some people becoming victims of their pent-up feelings. They become instruments in any kind of a situation that we witness today.”
Stating that nobody joins militancy unless pushed to a situation, he said, “There are vulnerable groups. I don’t mean everybody should be allowing their pent-up feelings and thus, become victims of such situations or become someone who will resort to waging a war against the government but there are people who become vulnerable.”
He said knowing these people is a complex thing. He said he had warned the government about it a number of times.
“The greed of the people in power and their complete disregard to the overall situation started creating such situations. The youth see no ray of hope and this leads to frustration and anger,” Sangma said.
He said while many look for options on their own, some fall victim to forces.
Stating that the international borders in the Northeast are porous, he asked, “What are people guarding the borders doing? There is a collective dereliction of duty by those in authority, which allowed all negative forces to emerge stronger.”
He said he had cautioned umpteen times that the petty smugglers, involved in smuggling foodgrains and nuts, will not confine themselves just to those items, and they may be used by forces to smuggle other things like drugs and weapons.