Harijan Colony blast case: Police arrest key suspect

SHILLONG, March 19: The police have arrested one more person in connection with the IED blast at Harijan Colony on March 9.
East Khasi Hills SP, Rituraj Ravi said on Tuesday that Namphyrnai Lyngdoh Peinlang (21) was arrested on Monday night following a joint operation conducted by the Mairang and Ri-Bhoi police teams.
The man, a resident of Peinlang village in the Eastern West Khasi Hills district, was later brought to Shillong.
“He is one of the main suspects in this case,” Ravi said, adding that the arrested person was in contact with an active member of the banned Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council.
“The East Khasi Hills police are determined to bring to justice all those who played a role in the conspiracy, abetment, financing, and carrying out the bomb blast,” he said.
The police subsequently beefed up security in Shillong and the district beyond following the Harijan Colony blast, in which one person was injured.
The Ri-Bhoi police also swung into action and arrested four members of an HNLC sleeper cell and seized materials used to make IEDs.
The HNLC claimed responsibility for the blast after a week of the incident and set a month’s deadline for the government to relocate the Harijan Colony residents.
Government ignores HNLC diktat
The state government stated that it made several attempts to relocate the residents of Harijan Colony and there is no reason to give credibility or importance to the HNLC’s diktat.
“The government has made several attempts and has not given up the idea of relocating the residents of Harijan Colony. Therefore, I see no reason to give credibility or importance to the diktat issued by the HNLC,” minister and MDA spokesperson, Paul Lyngdoh said when asked about the outlawed outfit’s ultimatum.
He played down the IED blast, insisting such “isolated incidents normally happen in all parts of the world”. He said the days of gun culture and extremism were over and the HNLC was a pale shadow of what it was 15 years ago.
“It is not a major force to worry us but we will not take anything for granted. We will ensure the police raise their efficiency to effectively deal with the situations that may emerge in the days ahead,” he said, claiming the incident will have no impact on tourism.