Shillong Unrest: Curfew to Be Imposed After Clashes Erupt Again

Internet and mobile services continue to remain suspended.

Curfew was imposed in at least 14 localities of Shillong on the night of Friday, 1 June, after clashes broke between a group of bus drivers and residents of the Motphran area.

(Photo Courtesy: Maina Dutta/The Quint)

A curfew will be in effect in all of Shillong with a revised timing of 4 pm to 5 am from Monday, 4 June, after sporadic violence broke out in certain localities from Friday night onwards.

The trouble began on 1 June when a bus driver was beaten up for harassing a girl in the Punjabi Lane of the Mophran area of Shillong. However, The Shillong Times claimed that a government-owned bus hit the girl and then the driver verbally abused her.

The situation turned violent soon after when two groups comprising – one comprising bus drivers and the other with local residents – started pelting stones at each other. A few policemen who were deployed to calm the situation down were left injured in this process. A journalist was also among the injured.

A curfew was imposed from 10 pm on Friday to 5 am Saturday in 14 localities. The army also conducted a flag march late in the night.

Recurring Violence Despite Tight Security

The next day, on Saturday, 2 June, four persons were arrested. Soon after, clashes between bus drivers and residents broke out again. About 100 special mob control teams of the state police came under intermittent attacks from a group of about 100 activists armed with stones and catapults. To control the situation, security forces used teargas and internet services were suspended .

On Sunday, 3 June, curfew was lifted for a few hours in the violence-hit areas of Shillong, with Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma saying at a press conference in the city that the government would find “amicable solutions” to the issues and that the police had found some persons who were “funding stone-pelters.”

Yes, there are issues bothering different communities, and these have been simmering for the last 20-30 years. We’ve asked for reports and we’ll ensure we find an amicable solution to these issues. It can’t be on streets but on a table where we sit across and discuss it.

Conrad Sangma, Meghalaya chief minister

He told reporters, “Fact that some people are displaced, hungry and beaten up, that's not true at all. People are very much safe and that is our commitment.”

Violence erupted later on Sunday too, in defiance of the curfew.

Punjab CM Sends Assessment Team to Meghalaya

Concerned by the safety of Dalit Sikhs in Shillong, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh deputed a four-member team – comprising Cabinet minister Sukhjinder Randhawa, MPs Gurjit Aujla and Ravneet Bittu, and MLA Kuldip Singh Vaid – to take stock of the situation, reported Hindustan Times.

(With inputs from Hindustan Times, The Times of India, The Shillong Times, PTI and IANS)