Khyriem out on bail, vows to intensify stir

***Ngos & KSU members received KSU president Daniel Khyriem with a hug outside the Shillong District Jail on Friday***

SHILLONG, MAY 15: Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) president Daniel Khyriem, who was arrested on May 7, was on Friday released on bail even as he threatened agitations if government is reluctant to implement the comprehensive mechanism to control influx and also passing of the village administration Bills to empower traditional institutions and headmen whose powers had been clipped by the Meghalaya high court ruling.

***KSU members escorting their president Daniel Khyriem and marched through the street while escorting him after he was released on bail on Friday.***

Khyriem was received by his family members, leaders and members of the 13 pro ILP ngos outside the Shillong District Jail on Friday.

On May 7 Khyriem was arrested and sent to 14 days judicial custody after he refused to accept the bailable warrant of arrest issued by the Special Court for his alleged role in destroying properties during the organization’s agitation to drive illegal immigrants from the state two years ago.

However, ngos decided to bail Khyriem after the state government agreed to withdraw all criminal cases registered against them during the 2013-ILP agitations.

Soon after his released, Khyriem told the gathering said, “This is not the end, from now onwards there will be intensive agitations if the government fails to address certain issues put before it.”

Stating that the more the government provokes the more it will witness agitations, Khyriem said, “The fighting will be till the state government fulfilled all the demanded.”

In as far as the comprehensive mechanism proposed by the 13 NGOs last year, Khyriem said, “We will immediately seek the status report on the land acquisition required for the setting up of the entry and exit points to curb the inflow of influx and illegal immigration into the state.”

Secondly, Khyriem said that the KSU demands the state government to ensure that indigenous people of the state are exempted from the proposed Residential Bill. The bill should be applicable only to outsiders, he felt.

Expressing opposition on the recent ordinance to empower traditional institutions in the state passed by the State government, Khyriem said, “We will never accept this ordinance.”

He said the ngos demand that the state government should immediately passed the village administration Bills passed by KHADC and JHADC.- By Our Reporter