The police have arrested three more persons involved in the Khyndailad IED blast, on February 2. The latest arrests took the total number of men in custody for the blast to four.
In a statement issued by the office of Superintendent of Police, East Khasi Hills, on Wednesday evening, SP Sylvester Nongtnger, said, “Based on the information received from a reliable source, 3 (three) other HNLC Cadres were arrested on the forenoon of the 2nd February, 2022 and during the house search, some explosive items were recovered and seized accordingly (sic).”
Earlier in the day, speaking to the press on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting, chief minister Conrad Sangma, had said, “All the people who were directly involved in the incident have been arrested, including the people from whom the dynamite sticks were procured, the people who planted it, as well as those who made it.”
Stating that the government will not spare anyone who tries to create an atmosphere of fear and terror in the state, the chief minister added the arrested people are mainly “supporters and sympathisers” of the banned Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC).
“Of course, the actual linkage and how much they have been involved in communication with the organisation is still a matter of investigation, so, we are looking into those aspects as well,” he said, adding that the police are still investigating to find out the next target, if any, following the recovery of live IED from the residence of the first accused.
On HNLC’s threat against traders, the chief minister said, “We have made it very clear that we will take strict action against all the people who are involved in this. We will not spare anyone and will do everything that is required to be done to bring them to book.” He also admitted that installation of CCTVs at strategic locations also helped the police to nab the culprits.
Earlier, a juvenile, who had identified himself as the “area commander for Shillong Region” of the HNLC, was arrested hours after the IED blast on Sunday evening.