The murder of Raja Raghuvanshi has not affected the tourism footfall in Sohra, the state’s most sought after destination, Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh said on Friday.
“Even when the case was not solved, the numbers remained steady. Now, with Meghalaya’s name being cleared, we are seeing even more interest,” he said.
He said tourist footfall in Sohra is rising steadily, and the government expects to touch 20 lakh visitors by the Cherry Blossom Festival.
There have been rising concerns over the possible impact on tourism following the murder of Indore tourist, Raja.
Meanwhile, Lyngdoh said the state government has accepted the apologies tendered by national news channels, bloggers and the families of Sonam and Raja Raghuvanshi.
“The genesis of our demand for an apology came when a number of comments were made, including incitement of violence against people from Meghalaya. Our immediate response led to a tremendous reaction,” Lyngdoh said.
According to the minister, major national media outlets including The Times of India, Republic TV, and several private bloggers issued “unqualified apologies,” effectively meeting the government’s demand for a retraction.
“We had made it very clear: if there is no apology, we would go ahead with defamation suits, and FIRs were also filed. Now that these individuals and organisations have withdrawn their statements and offered public apologies — including the family of the deceased — the matter ends there,” Lyngdoh said.
Meanwhile, the cabinet adopted a resolution to formally acknowledge with gratitude the role played by various agencies, government departments, and especially the role played by the police in handling the case.
Lyngdoh said the cabinet will also formally meet the Director General of Police and her team from the East Khasi Hills district to formally acknowledge the role that they have played in cracking the case.
Earlier, the government had felicitated and handed cash incentives to volunteers and those involved in the search and rescue operations in Sohra.
The cabinet also condoled the loss of lives in the Air India crash at Ahmedabad.
