Unidentified miscreants triggered an IED blast at Khliehriat police reserve in East Jaintia Hills in the wee hours of Wednesday morning. Confirming the development, state Home Minister Lahkmen Rymbui said the bomb blast took place at around 1.45am, adding that the matter is under investigation.
“This morning at around 1:45 am, one bomb exploded at the Khliehriat police reserve,” Rymbui said.
Police said a police personnel was injured in the blast. A boundary wall of the police reserve building at Khliehriat was damaged due to the blast. “It is an IED bomb, which exploded. The matter is under investigation,” the minister said. “Police are very vigilant now to curb illegal activities,” he added.
Police are also collecting evidence at the place of occurrence and conducting checks on vehicles.
In an email to media houses, the proscribed Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) has claimed responsibility for the blast, demanding implementation of the Inner-line permit among others.
Eastern Range Inspector General of Police MK Singh rushed to the spot along with a bomb squad from the police headquarters here. District superintendent of police Jagpal D Singh said two other buildings were also damaged.
Window panes of the structures were shattered due to the intensity of the blast, he said. The injured is out of danger, the SP said.
The blast was an act of revenge against the police for allegedly torturing their cadres in custody in the past, HNLC general secretary S Nongtraw said.
The outfit has also warned Star Cement no to go ahead with its expansion plans in Brishyrnot area of the district. Currently operating from Bangladesh, the HNLC used to be active in seven districts in the Khasis Jaintia Hills region.
Sustained counter-insurgency operations and improving police-public relationships in the past two decades have greatly affected the activities of the outfit, except for stray attacks, a senior official told PTI. The police are collecting evidence at the place of occurrence and conducting checks on vehicles.
(With PTI inputs)
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