HNLC threatens to shoot up non tribals

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaMay 17, 2019

SHILLONG: Six days after gunning down a man for allegedly working as a “police informer”, the proscribed Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) has threatened to indiscriminately shoot at non tribals if the police do not stop harassing family members and symphatizers of the outfit.

The Khasi rebel outfit also questioned the failure of the state police to arrest (L) Romeo Lyngdoh despite claiming that he was a ‘fund arranger’ of the HNLC.

In a statement issued here on Friday, HNLC general secretary cum publicity secretary Sainkupar Nongtraw warned the state police to stop harassing the family members and sympathizers of the outfit.

“…if they do so, we shall fire indiscriminately to non tribals be they beggars or businessmen, be the high class or low class. The police should not underestimate us. With an automatic assault rifle we can shoot upto ten non tribal people in a minute. We are serious about it. Do not provoke us,” Nongtraw said.

Fifty four-year-old Romeo Lyngdoh was shot dead at his residence at Lapalang village along the international border in East Khasi Hills District on last Sunday night.

The HNLC while claiming responsibility behind the killing alleged that Romeo alias ‘Bah Lieh’ was working as a police informer.

This claim by the outfit however was strongly refuted by the district police chief Claudia A Lyngwa who revealed that Bah Lieh was in fact an HNLC overground worker and was instrumental in arranging funds for the outfit.

She had also stated that for the last one year Bah Lieh had become slightly greedy and has been quietly siphoning the money for himself adding “the only reason the HNLC actually kill him is because he has betrayed them.”

Reacting to her statement, the HNLC leader maintained that not only Romeo was a police informer but he also had connection with all the higher ups in the police department.

“If that is the case (he was working for the HNLC) then why didn’t the police arrest him in 2016 when his car was used by our cadres? When he was the owner how the police could let him (get) away. When the police could arrest youths for simply having links with the HNLC, why didn’t they arrest Romeo?” he asked.

Stating that this was not a small case, Nongtraw said IEDs and other assault rifle weapons were recovered (from the vehicle owned by Lyngdoh) adding “If Romeo was not an informer then why did SOT personnel came to meet him everytime and drink with him.”

“The day our cadres shot him, Romeo was sitting outside and drinking, when he saw our cadres he tried to run and get his 9mm pistol which our cadres had siezed from his possession,” he stated.

The general secretary further alleged that the unlicensed 9mm pistol and a vehicle was given to him by the police for his defence and said, “Romeo was in no way associated to us. Now that he is dead the police have used him and deny that he was their special informer…The police have accused the HNLC demanding money from him. Why will we demand money from a police informer knowing that he will inform the police? We are not fools.”

“Before we eliminate anybody we verify the name address and his crime towards our cause. Knowing the nick name Bahlieh is not hard. We had warned prior to the day of attack in the media that we shall eliminate a police informer. After getting information about his credentials and history we decided to issue him death penalty. If this was a case of money then by now so many people would have been killed by us. Why only Bahlieh?” he added.

The HNLC leader said it is time for the police to accept that Bahlieh was an informer and try to compensate his family as they had used him and his services.

“Denying about him shall make the police department loose more informers as they will realise that after using them the police will simply put blame on them. The police by using local informers are trying to create a divide among us,” he said.

Meanwhile, the outfit also appealed to the people to understand and never fall prey to the police tactics.