Meghalaya rebel chief to move bail

Shillong -  Meghalaya's outlawed Garo National Liberation Army's (GNLA) arrested supremo Champion R. Sangma is likely to move a bail application before a court here, his lawyer said Wednesday.

"He (Champion) has asked me this (Wednesday) evening to prepare a bail application for his release," Sangma's legal counsel Sujit Dey told IANS.

"We are likely to move the bail on the day when he is produce before the Court of Deputy Commissioner Judicial B. Giri," he added.

Sangma, whose outfit is fighting for a separate Garoland, was arrested July 30 near the India-Bangladesh border in Meghalaya. He met his legal counsel Saturday and hinted the possibility of holding talks with the government.

The court remanded the former deputy superintendent of police-turned GNLA supremo for 14 days in police custody.

Sangma, wanted by police for masterminding several crimes, including killings and extortion in insurgency-ravaged Garo Hills in western Meghalaya, has been booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code for waging war against the Indian state and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

"These are serious sections under the law and non-bailable offences, but it will be up to the discretionary power of the court whether to grant bail," Dey said.

Sangma, a former deputy superintendent of police, deserted the Meghalaya Police due to alleged harassment from his superiors and floated the GNLA in November 2009. The Meghalaya government terminated his service in July 2010.

The outfit, which had been outlawed by the Indian government, forged an operational alliance with the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB), which provided it access to sophisticated arms and ammunition, and enabled it to unleash a reign of terror in the three impoverished districts of Garo Hills.

Over 35 people, including security personnel, have been killed in the Garo Hills in the last one year by GNLA rebels, who number around 100.