A mob of unidentified miscreants pelted stones at the Meghalaya Chief Minister's Office in Tura in Garo Hills and seriously injured five policemen when the CM, Conrad Sangma, was holding a meeting with leaders of some agitating groups on Monday.
Sangma was in the CMO when the incident took place. Following the attack, the administration clamped a night curfew in Tura to try and dissipate the extant tension in the area.
The 'attack' began on Monday evening, when miscreants started raining stones at the CMO after Sangma held a meeting with leaders of some NGOs and groups who has been agitating for a winter capital in Tura.
Shillong is Meghalaya's capital now, and the meeting had been called as some agitators had been on hunger strike for about two weeks to take forward their demand.
Videos shared by the CM office showed the injured policemen lying on the floors while the CM was seen attending to them. Police had to fire tear gas shells to disperse the crowd.
#WATCH | Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma was having discussions with agitating organisations based in Garo-Hills who are on a hunger strike for a winter capital in Tura: CMO PRO
— ANI (@ANI) July 24, 2023
Meanwhile, a crowd (other than agitating groups) gathered at the CMO in Tura and started pelting stones.… pic.twitter.com/EqUhQDwjtl
In a video message, Sangma said the NGOs told him that those involved in the attack were not part of their group.
"The meeting was going on, we had already agreed to meet in Shillong to further discuss the matter with all stakeholders, and the NGOs seemed more or less satisfied. A majority of the groups and NGOs were not part of this fasting protest, only two-three of them were there. But still I considered it necessary to have discussion with all stakeholders," Sangma said in the video statement.
"After the discussion was almost over, we heard sloganeering from outside. I asked them not to create any scene out here. Their leaders (of the NGOs in the talks) went outside to speak to the people. They came back and said they did not know them," he further said. "They are some individuals who tried to create some kind of trouble," he said.
The CM also announced financial assistance of Rs 50,000 to each of the injured and said that the state government would also bear the treatment cost.