Extortion drive by Karbi rebel group
NONGPOH: Fearing retaliation from Khasi Students Union (KSU) against the Karbi people living in the State, the All Meghalaya Karbi Association (AMKA) on Monday, offered to mediate between the KSU and the NGOs based in Karbi Anglong so as to put pressure on the Karbi People Liberation Tigers (KPLT) to stop harassing the Khasi people in Block-II so that there would not be any misgiving and misunderstanding between the two communities following the acts of the Karbi militant group.
This decision was taken in a meeting held between the leaders of KSU North Khasi Hills district represented by president Ferdynald K Kharkamni and the leaders of AMKA led by president B S Teron at the KSU office in Nongpoh here this afternoon.
It may be mentioned here that the KSU had threatened to retaliate against the Karbi communities in the State following the death threat to Umthlieh Rangbah Shnong P Marsharing by the KPLT due to refusal of payment of extortion amount of Rs. 2000 per households by the residents of Umthlieh and the KPLT held Marsharing responsible and thus threatened to eliminate him.
Speaking to The Shillong Times after the meeting, Teron said that the association vehemently condemned the extortion demand and the atrocities meted to the Khasi people in Block-II by the KPLT and viewed that such draconian acts by groups of people under the banner of KPLT will lead to mistrust and difference between the Khasi and the Karbi who have coexisted amicably since time immemorial.
He also exhorted the government of the two states namely Assam and Meghalaya to take up the matter with all sincerity and resolve it at the earliest and called upon the leaders of the villages to work in tandem with the NGOs as to ensure peace and tranquility in the state.
“We will mediate with the NGOs in Karbi Anglong and arrange a meeting with the KSU so as to resolve the vexed issue where a head of a traditional institution has been served a death threat by the KPLT and also to maintain peace and security in the border areas,” the AMKA president asserted.