HT Bureau
SHILLONG, Aug 4: Meghalaya chief minister Conrad K Sangma has taken up with the Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on the alleged harassment by the United People’s Front of Karbi Longri (UPFKL) against the Khasi-Pnar community in Block-I.
“I have taken up the matter with the Assam chief minister and he is taking that matter very seriously,” Sangma told reporters.
“And as we speak the Assam government is having a series of meetings on certain incidents and issues that are there pertaining to the border area,” he said while informing that he would again be in touch with the Assam CM by evening.
Further, Sangma informed that the proposed joint visit to the border areas by the chief ministers of the two states will take place after August 15.
“Just to share with you in the last four days, we have spoken to each other more than 10 times on the phone and because of certain circumstances we were not able to visit in the last few days but most probably post August 15, we will try and visit together,” he said.
“In the meantime, the issues that are coming up in these areas, we are ironing those issues out,” he added.
With regards to the alleged illegal check gate at Khanduli village in West Jaintia Hills, Sangma said that the matter will be resolved within this week.
He said that the matter has been brought to his notice by the local political leadership and public in the Khanduli area.
“That issue also has been taken up by me with my Assam counterpart and I hope that we will be able to resolve that within this week itself,” he said.
Asked, the CM however said, “There is a bit of a complication in that matter but I have got an assurance from the Assam CM that he will resolve the issue but let’s wait for the final outcome but all efforts are being made and I am pretty sure we will resolve it.”
Earlier, people from West Jaintia Hills including NGOs have demanded the state government to provide adequate security to the people residing in Block I from harassment by Karbi militants.
