Sohra

Shillong, Oct. 7: Three persons died in two localities in Sohra, East Khasi Hills district since Tuesday after they were lynched by villagers who accused them of being menshohnoh (cut-throats) or those who worship U Thlen (a mythical serpent) in the hope of acquiring further wealth.

According to police, rumours about the presence of cut-throats started doing the rounds since the disappearance of a mentally challenged person from Mawmluh village near Sohra, and the death of a pilot, Mark Gautam Reddy Lynrah, who had gone missing from Sohra since August 18. Lynrah’s body was recovered from a gorge in Sohra on August 27.

The people who were murdered this week, two at Maraikaphon village and one at Mawkisyiem, were beaten to death by mobs which alleged that they were menshohnoh.

On Tuesday around 3.30am, residents of Maraikaphon assaulted Timingstar Khongsit, 42, suspecting him of being a menshohnoh. Khongsit died on the spot.

Yesterday morning, Sohra police arrested 10 persons in connection with Khongsit’s death. Later, around 500 people of Maraikaphon area gheraoed the Sohra police station and demanded the release of the apprehended persons.

However, the arrested persons were produced in court here today and remanded in police custody.

According to the police, Khongsit, a mentally challenged man hailing from Laitmawroh, Laitlyngkot, was on his way to meet a Catholic priest in Sohra. However, he was intercepted at Maraikaphon where the villagers lynched him.

The police recovered, among other things, a Bible from Khongsit’s possession. The village council (Dorbar Shnong) of Laitlyngkot also strongly reacted to the killing of Khongsit.

In another incident, around 4am on Tuesday, residents of Mawkisyiem village intercepted a Maruti car (ML-04-3899) and the three persons travelling in it — Batskhem Rynjah, 30, Rokis Nongkynrih, 28, and Warless Nongrum, 33, while they were carrying a head of a cattle inside the car.

The villagers assaulted them, suspecting them to be cut-throats. The trio sustained injuries and were shifted to the community health centre in Sohra and the Shillong civil hospital. While Nongrum died at Sohra the same day, Rynjah succumbed to his injuries the following day. Nongkynrih’s condition is stated to be critical.

Sources said the perpetrators of the incident and the families of the victim had come to a “compromise”.

In yet another incident, on Wednesday, P. Rana, 32, a Nepalese citizen from Lad Mawphlang village, had a narrow escape when villagers of Laitryngew tried to lynch him. He was also suspected of being a menshohnoh.

With the timely intervention of the police, who had to lathicharge the mob, Rana was saved.

To restore normality in the region, a peace committee was formed in Sohra yesterday but its membership was yet to be decided.

Tomorrow, a meeting between East Khasi Hills deputy commissioner Jopthiaw Lyngdoh and the elders of Nongkynrih-Laitlyngkot village has been convened here. Another meeting in Sohra is likely to take place on October 11.

East Khasi Hills superintendent of police A.R. Mawthoh told reporters that the police would do their job in bringing the perpetrators of violence to book. He added that the police would pursue the incident at Mawkisyiem though a “compromise” had been reached between the perpetrators and the victim’s families.

He said additional police forces had been deployed in and around Sohra to ensure that normality was restored at the earliest.

Known for its splendid natural beauty, Sohra is now in the news for the wrong reasons even as a sense of insecurity has enveloped the area.