Shillong, Oct 8: A militant of the outlawed Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) surrendered before a senior official in East Jaintia Hills district, Meghalaya Home Minister Lahkmen Rymbui said.
The militant identified as Emanuel Suchen, wanted in two IED attacks in the district earlier this year, surrendered before the senior district official at the district headquarters town of Khliehriat on Thursday, the minister said.
“Better sense prevailed for Suchen, he surrendered himself to the police. He surrendered himself before the Additional District Magistrate of East Jaintia Hills district in Khliehriat,” the Home Minister told PTI.
He said the due process of law in dealing with surrendered militants will follow.
According to the Home Minister, Suchen joined the HNLC in 2002, was arrested in 2008, and was jailed for three years only to return to the militant group after his release.
The minister said, “preliminary investigation revealed Suchen has a hand in the two IED attacks in the district at a cement factory and at the police barrack.”
In the past three months, the HNLC targeted their IED attacks in the state capital.
On August 10, a powerful IED went off behind a busy busy market in Shillong injuring two persons and causing damages to the nearby buildings. Three persons were arrested in this connection and the former leader of the HNLC, Cheristerfield Thangkhiew was gunned down in an encounter two days later.
On October 4, the outlawed organisation planted another IED outside the city office of the ruling NPP but the IED did not explode.
The HNLC was formed in 1997. It was declared an outlawed organisation by the Union Home Affairs Ministry in 2019.
