By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Aug 13: The state government on Wednesday said the Bangladeshi intruders in the South West Khasi Hills district could be a gang of dacoits and not linked to the neighbouring country’s armed forces.
Identity cards found with some of the six men caught – one of them succumbed to injuries in a local hospital – by residents of the district’s border villages, fuelled speculations about the intruders being members of the police in Bangladesh.
“We need to investigate whether the ID cards are genuine or duplicates. We have kept our options open and are not taking anything for granted,” Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma said.
“From initial reports, these men seem to be a group of armed dacoits and not members of an organised crime network. Any official link is unlikely, but we are pursuing every lead and investigating in coordination with the central agencies,” he said.
He said most of the intruders have been caught, and strict action is being taken against them. “We have heightened the security in the (border) areas to ensure such incidents do not happen and the people feel safe,” he said.
The chief minister said the Centre has been kept in the loop since the Bangladeshi men were caught. “The Intelligence Bureau and the Ministry of Home Affairs are being updated regularly,” he said.
Citing preliminary reports, he said seven to eight Bangladeshi nationals had entered South West Khasi Hills, and the hunt for one or two of them is on.
“The locals told me that the intruders appeared lost and could not find their way back to Bangladesh. We have caught most of them, and the others will be caught soon,” Sangma said, insisting that such incidents have not been reported from other parts of the district bordering Bangladesh. Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong stated that one of the gang members allegedly involved in attacking and kidnapping a youth in South West Khasi Hills could have crossed over to Bangladesh.
Tynsong, who also holds the Home portfolio, said the Meghalaya Police and Border Security Force personnel were scouting for the accused.
He said the Bangladeshi men stepped into Meghalaya to rob the villagers.
Tynsong held a meeting on Wednesday to discuss the incident. He directed the Deputy Commissioners and Superintendents of Police to be more proactive and ensure that such incidents do not occur again. “The state government and the BSF submitted a report on the incident to the MHA,” he said.
According to South West Khasi Hills SP, Banraplang Jyrwa, six of the intruders have been caught out of whom one, identified as Akram, was reportedly found by locals of Kaithakona village in a seriously injured state on Monday.
The villagers handed him over to the BSF after which he was rushed to Maheshkola PHC and thereafter to Khonjoy PHC where he was declared brought dead by the medical officer.
