United Democratic Party (UDP) working president and Jaiaw MDC Paul Lyngdoh has maintained that no official, however high-ranking, who was involved in the killing of former militant leader Cheristerfield Thangkhiew should be spared.
Thangkhiew was killed in a police raid in the wee hours of August 13, 2021. Police suspected him of being involved in several improvised explosive device (IED) blasts in East Jaintia Hills and Shillong. The authorities claimed he had attacked them with a knife during the raid.
The Justice Vaiphei inquiry, made public last week, found that the police had acted hastily in conducting the raid in the middle of the night, saying that the operation was well-planned but executed poorly, recklessly, hastily and without proper application of mind. Justice Vaiphei also said that the police were guilty of “thoughtless and excessive use of force”. However, he stopped short of making any recommendation against the police personnel involved in the “botched operation”.
Lyngdoh said that the act led to an abuse of human rights and that those responsible “should not be spared and the due process of law should be allowed to prevail.”
“Whoever and at whichever level is responsible for an act that led to an abuse of human rights and of any human being should not be spared and a due process of law should be allowed to prevail,” he said adding that the rights of human beings should be protected under the law.
When asked about the report, Lyngdoh said that nobody should be spared or will be spared by the next government, which he confidently said will be led by the UDP. Ironically, Lyngdoh’s party colleague Lahkmen Rymbui is the Home Minister and thus in charge of the police.
Meanwhile, relating to the vehicle scam in the police department, Lyngdoh said that there should be no blue-eyed boy in any department.
The scam revolves around the alleged misuse of police vehicles by a single senior officer, GK Iangrai, as has been made out in a leaked report.
“In a matter of just five months, the UDP will ensure that any scams are unearthed and we will take them to the logical end and see that the guilty are penalised,” he said.
