The state government moved quickly to forestall any build up of tension between communities today after a report in a section of the local press that claimed that a Khasi youth had been stabbed in Them Ïewmawlong, an area dominated by non-tribals.
The case in question was reported on by Highland Post in Thursday’s edition. Police had informed that one Zecharia Sohthiang had come up with an inconsistent and confusing story about how he had come to be stabbed one night over the last weekend. In the end, he admitted to investigators that he had been stabbed by a woman in Police Bazaar.
However, sections of the media instead reported that the incident took place in Them Ïewmawlong.
The matter was raised in the Assembly today by Mawlai MLA Brightstarwell Marbaniang. Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong, who is in charge of the Home Department, related the entire history of the case, including the misleading statements made by Sohthiang.
“There are several reports that have been published regarding the incident, which are not in consonance with the reports of the police department and, as the investigation of the case is in progress, the facts about the case will be shared with all stakeholders as and when the investigation discovers the real cause of the incident,” Tynsong said.
He also made an appeal to all the concerned citizens to let the law take its own course and to refrain from circulating information that is not genuine, especially on social media.
