Shillong, June 26: The Thma U Rangli Juki (TUR) on Sunday strongly condemned the recent targeted attack in broad daylight near Roberts Hospital, Jaiaw by a group of local youth on two students from Kerala who were interning in Shillong and were out having their lunch.

TUR also appreciated the local citizens who opposed this attack and defended the young students from Kerala showing that most of the citizens of Shillong and Meghalaya do not condone such criminal and communal acts.

“But we know that such targeted attacks on non-local workers, medical representatives, vendors, construction workers, delivery people and others have also happened in the recent past that has created a feeling of insecurity amongst the citizens of Shillong,” TUR leader Angela Rangad said in a statement.

Stating that some of these violent attacks have been reported and some have passed unnoticed, Rangad said TUR strongly demands the Meghalaya Police and administration to proactively investigate these incidents and prosecutes the criminals who are violating people’s human rights and are bringing a bad reputation for our state and community.

“TUR expresses its solidarity once again to our friends from Kerala and demands that Meghalaya Police and administration does a quick investigation and arrests the perpetrators of this cowardly act and allow the law to take its own course,” she said.

Acknowledging the anxieties that small tribes face about losing their culture, identity and livelihood but this anxiety cannot be removed by such criminality, Rangad however said protections offered by the Indian Constitution for indigenous community is not in any way opposed to the rights of peace and security that non-indigenous people and workers are supposed to enjoy in our state.

Moreover, it is worrying that laws that offer protection for the life, land and livelihood of the indigenous people are being weakened by indigenous elites for their self-aggrandizing capitalist greed, she added.

TUR leader said her organization believes that a developed society is one where minorities, ethnic, religious and of other identities feel secure and are able to contribute to the development of society as a whole.

She also urged the Dorbar Shnongs where such incidents have happened, to actively seek justice for the victims and work towards creating an inclusive culture of peace.