Public anger bursts out; one killed, curfew imposed in Tura Written by Meghalaya Times. Posted in Front Page Staff Reporter Shillong, June 21: The sweltering anger against the rising rapes in Garo Hills, especially in the light of recent Ampati rape case, burst out on Friday evening against three people, who are accused of attempting to rape a mentally unstable girl. The vent out was so fierce that it left two people dead and several injured. Infuriated mob of about 800- 900 on Friday night took siege of Tura Civil Hospital after learning of the accused being treated there. This compelled the district administration to impose curfew in Tura town and sound high alert in all the police stations in the district. The town of Tura was plundered by mob when an attempted rape case was reported from Chanmari Wadanang in Tura, West Garo Hills on Friday afternoon. Sources informed that at about 3.30 – 4 pm, five laborers who had come to Tura to work as carpenters from Assam, allegedly tried to rape an 18 – year old mentally unstable girl albeit molest her. She, however, managed to escape their grip and raised the alarm. Instantly, a strong mob of about 400 people gathered and thrashed the accused. While two of the accused managed to escape, three were caught by the mob. Subsequently, they were thrashed to the point of unconsciousness. When the police arrived, the trio was handed to the law enforcement body in their unconscious state. They were then taken to Tura Civil Hospital for medical care so also was girl for medical verification if rape was committed on her, as the mob thought that she was raped. The medical report ruled – out rape. In the meantime, word spread fast about this incident, with stress that the crime was committed by non – indigenous people. What followed was utter chaos. Along with the odd 400 people from Chanmari Wadanang, about 500 more soon joined in and went on rampage. Shutters were forcefully pulled down in Tura Super market and any unfamiliar non – indigenous person sighted was not spared. This resulted in death of the driver of a TATA Winger, who was coming back from Damalgre. He was beaten to death in Araimile, with his head being smashed by a stone, and the Winger was burnt down to ashes. Media personnel too were not spared by the furious mob, who broke the camera of one of the journalist on the scene. The mob then rushed to Tura Civil Hospital, demanding police to hand – over the three unconscious accused to them. But police did not allow. In their anger, the mob overturned a police gypsy outside the hospital. To control the agitated mob, police had to resort to blank firing; police apparently fired about 35 rounds in two batches. In the first batch, two rounds were fired but nothing happened. When the mob tried to inch closer to the hospital gate, police had to fire about 30 odd rounds more; thus stopping their advancement but movement, with situation still grim. Almost simultaneously, similar rampage was reported from other parts of the region. It was reported that not even doctors were spared by the wrath of the mob. Reportedly, Dr. Rudra Sangma was stoned in Ringrey while Dr Debashish was beaten up in Hawakhana. Also, another death was reported. But its identity could not be ascertained. It was also unclear as to if the second death was of one of the accused or another civilian. Sensing the worsening the turmoil, West Garo Hills clamped indefinite curfew in Tura and night curfew in the entire district. Till the filing of this report, Police could not ascertain the identity of the three accused as they were still unconscious, though the situation had calmed down a little. Also, many have interpreted this incident as outburst of public anger against the inaction in Nurul Islam case, who is absconding after allegedly raping a minor in Ampati.
Posted on: Sat, 22 Jun 2013 04:35:45 +0000