‘Yet to be verified’: Meghalaya DGP on leaked intel memo about GNLF regrouping

Meghalaya DGP LR Bishnoi said “inputs do not mean that a problem exists, but inputs mean whatever people hear or know they share with us, and we have to verify it”

SHILLONG: The Meghalaya police are yet to get any confirmation on an intelligence input that there was an attempt to revive the disbanded terrorist group ‘Garo National Liberation Army’ (GNLA), the state director general of police (DGP) LR Bishnoi said on Monday, responding to concern triggered by a leaked memo on the topic on social media.

Meghalaya DGP LR Bishnoi said said the leaked memo has created panic and that action will be taken against whoever was found to have leaked the internal intelligence memo (Twitter/lrbishnoiips)

The internal memo of May 11, written by a deputy superintendent of police, or DSP-ranked officer in the West Garo Hills, asked local police teams to verify “source information” that some members of the disbanded group were regrouping and that they were on a recruitment drive

The Meghalaya DGP said they take all intelligence inputs seriously but it did not mean that every input was correct.

“Those were source inputs only and we have written for verification. Once verification is done by all Garo Hills district SPs (superintendent of police) and if something is there, we will share it with the media,” Bishnoi told HT on phone. He said that inputs keep coming in and “we take all inputs seriously”. “However, inputs do not mean that a problem exists, but inputs mean whatever people hear or know they share with us, and we have to verify it,” the DGP added.

The memo cited ‘source information’ received from a former member of the outfit, which indicated that the GNLA, which has been dormant for many years, was conducting meetings in many areas including Jadigittim and Nongalbibra (SGH), Shallang (WKH) to encourage youth to join the outfit.

The memo added that 500 youth from various districts of Garo Hills have already joined the outfit and were sent to Myanmar and Nagaland for basic arms training. It also claimed that various big businessmen, who were close associates of the GNLA earlier, were aiding the outfit to regroup.

Bishnoi said the leaked memo has created panic and that “unnecessary sensation should not be created”.

As a precautionary measure, he said, all police stations have been directed to intensify counter-insurgency operations, raids, patrolling, and area domination exercises to prevent the GNLA or any other group of misguided elements to disrupt the prevailing peace in the region.

The state DGP added that an inquiry was also being conducted to ascertain how the memo leaked.