SHILLONG: Meghalaya Home Minister, James Sangma has asserted that the Government will start the process of talks with Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) only after the outfit lays down arms.
When asked about the stand of the Government regarding holding talks with banned HNLC, the Home Minister said, “They (HNLC) must shun violence and come forward to say that they are laying arms and then we will think about having talks.”
It may be mentioned that few years back, HNLC had expressed its willingness to hold talks with the Government
When asked about the strength of the Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA) which has been more or less neutralized, Sangma said that senior cadres were no longer there in the outfit
According to Sangma, there are few individuals in the outfit who are in the process of surrendering The GNLA which was once a strong force in Garo Hills is now more or less neutralized with the killing of its chief Sohan Shira earlier this year besides surrender of a number of GNLA workers before the police. Many cadres of the outfit were arrested in the last few years.