Manjit Singh Rai
Against re-locating the existing lane
Newmai News Network
Shillong | June 6
The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) member Manjit Singh Rai today said Punjabi community is living peacefully and the situation in Shillong is going to be normal within a few days.
“The (Punjabi) community is living peacefully. The situation will be normal within few days,” Rai told mediapersons after he had a series of meetings with the state government here.
Rai also called on Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma who assured him that the government machinery is in place to ensure safety for everyone and that everything will pass off.
The NCM member also reviewed the law and order situation with state’s Chief Secretary Y Tsering, state’s Home Principal Secretary M S Rao and the Director General of Police S B Singh.
“I reviewed the whole situation and from the point of law and order, it was well maintained by the state government. I will present the report tomorrow (before the Commission),” he said.
According to the Commission member, a small altercation had taken place at Punjabi Lane and while a compromise has been affected by the two parties, “mischievous people” created rumours and disturbed peace.
When asked on demand made by the local bodies to relocate the Punjabi Lane to a new location, Rai said that the Sikh population has been living in that place for more than 100 years.
“It is not feasible to relocate someone from the present location to another place,” Rai said.
Rai had also visited the Punjabi Lane at Them Iew Mawlong to interact with the local Sikh population there earlier in the day.
Curfew timing relaxed
The indefinite curfew clamped in Punjabi Lane and 13 other localities within Lumdiengjri PS and Cantonment Beat House has been relaxed from 7 am till 2pm and there was no report of any untoward incident, East Khasi Hills deputy commissioner P S Dkhar said.
He said the night curfew imposed in the entire city yesterday from 4 pm till 5 am this morning has also been relaxed by two hours from today and the new timing will be from 6 pm today till 5 am.
The authorities had to promulgated curfew in the entire city after intelligence inputs indicated that protesters from outside the city had entered the state capital with an intention to disturb peace, Dkhar said.
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma appealed for peace as the current situation has affected everyone.
