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Meghalaya : Fresh wave of violence, curfew imposed |
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Meghalaya, which has been witnessing a students’ agitation in the Garo Hills for the past three months, plunged into a fresh bout of trouble last week. At least nine students - all in their teens - were killed on Friday, Sept. 30, when the police opened fire on a students rally protesting against the restructuring of the state’s secondary education board.
Over 90 people. including 54 policemen and three magistrates were injured, some of them critically. Indefinite curfew has been clamped in the troubled districts and the Army called in to bring the situation under control.
According to reports, the trouble broke out simultaneously at Tura, Headquarters of West Garo Hills district and Williamnagar, headquarters of the East Garo Hills, the venue of two rallies by the Garo Students’ Union and the Garo Hills Citizen’s Forum respectively.
Thousands of students had gathered to express solidarity with their demand. Officials said the mob had defied prohibitory orders and turned violent, forcing the police and CRPF personnel to open fire. “Five persons were killed in Williamnagar and four in Tura, said IGP (Law and Order) Vijay Kumar.
According to official sources, the target of the demonstrators was State Home Minister Mukul Sangma - who, they alleged, had betrayed the Garos to help the D.D. Lapang government take a pro-Khasi stand.
Garos and Khasis - the two primary tribes - have been at loggerheads over bifurcation of the state education board. The issue almost snowballed into a statehood movement by the Garos.
Former Lok Sabha Speaker P.A. Sangma described the police firing as “unprovoked” and demanded a judicial inquiry as well as the state Home Minister’s dismissal.
The government has announced an ex gratia of Rs. 1 lakh to the next of kin of each of the dead.
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