Shillong: Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma today dismissed the demand put forth by statehood activists to bifurcate this small north eastern state into two separate Khasi and Garo states even as five Garo Hills districts were partially affected by the shutdown called by the agitators.
“I do not foresee further division of Meghalaya. There is only a bunch of people who are asking for this (statehood),” Mukul told reporters at the sideline of a conference on chemical disaster management here.
He said, it has been there for a long time and their demand is nothing new.
Coming down heavily on agitators who have taken law in their own hand damaging government properties, the Chief Minister said, democratically demonstrating or prevailing upon government on issues whether for statehood or for anything in the spirit of democracy is okay but it does not give them the right to damage public property.
Yesterday, a group of statehood activists stormed the office of the deputy commissioner in Tura and 13 persons have been arrested including the general secretary of the Garo Hills State Movement Committee Augustine R Marak in this connection.
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