5 companies of central forces deployed in city
Shillong, Aug 20: Assuring citizens and tourists of safety, East Khasi Hills Deputy Commissioner Abhilash Baranwal on Thursday said additional forces have been deployed to prevent further escalation after Wednesday’s violent KSU rally, and the Meghalaya government is coordinating with Assam to control repercussions.
“We are committed to the safety and security of all. We have deployed five additional companies of CAPF, including one RAF company, along with district police to ensure no further incident happens. Anyone taking law into their own hands will be dealt with strictly,” Baranwal said.
He appealed to residents of Shillong and East Khasi Hills to cooperate with administration and police, report any incident, and avoid rumour-mongering.
Condemning the violence, the DC said, “A series of assaults that can vitiate the peaceful atmosphere of the city has no place in a civilized and peaceful society.”
He said the rally, permitted with strict conditions from 4 pm from Jaiaw, saw vandalism, arson, assaults on bystanders and desecration of statues of Swami Vivekananda and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
Baranwal said such incidents hurt Meghalaya’s tourism push and livelihoods linked to it, and may have repercussions outside.
“Incidents like these have a very negative bearing on efforts to promote Meghalaya as a national and international tourism destination, which is directly linked to livelihood promotion,” he said.
He confirmed reports of Meghalaya vehicles being stopped and vandalized near Jorabat.
He said retaliatory incidents could affect youth employment, noting that MSSDS has identified around 20,000 jobs outside the state.
“Any repercussions in any part of the country will deter our youth from pursuing employment opportunities outside and erode trust,” he said.
On granting permission despite past incidents, he said, “The Government of Meghalaya believes in democratic expression of protest. If there is a legal application for a peaceful protest, we wanted to facilitate that under strict conditions. Seeking permission to organize a protest is not permission to assault, to vandalize, to commit arson, to hurt children.”
On security lapses, the DC said about 200 personnel were deployed, but the long route created vulnerable pockets.
He said intelligence and response are being reviewed.
“It is premature to call it a complete failure of intelligence. We did receive intelligence, that is why permission was given with strict conditions and deployment was done. Whether it was sufficient and timely disseminated is something we need to examine. We could have done better,” he said.
He clarified that granting permission for a peaceful protest is not permission to assault or vandalize.
