Chargesheet filed against Meghalaya minister

Meghalaya Police Monday filed a chargesheet in a court against Congress minister Deborah Marak and her aide Tennydard Marak for "hatching criminal conspiracy" with a terrorist outfit to garner votes in the February 2013 assembly election.

"We have filed a chargesheet against Deborah Marak and Tennydard Marak in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate F.S. Sangma for hatching a criminal conspiracy with the Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA) to garner votes in the assembly elections," East Garo Hills district police chief Davies Marak told IANS.

Deborah Marak's rival Independent candidate Jonathon N. Sangma said in a police complaint that the Congress leader sought the help of terrorist outfit GNLA to intimidate people to vote for her in the assembly polls.

He also lodged a complaint with the Williamnagar District Electoral Officer saying that the GNLA had sent letters to some villages asking people not to vote for him but to support Deborah Marak.

Deborah Marak was elected from Williamnagar assembly constituency in East Garo Hills, and became a cabinet minister in the Congress-led Meghalaya United Alliance government headed by Chief Minister Mukul Sangma.

"After a detailed investigation, we have established that Deborah and Tennydard requested the GNLA to intimidate voters in Williamnagar. They themselves had gone to the villages displaying posters of GNLA and intimidated voters not to vote for Jonathan," police officer Davies said.

"The GNLA extended support to Deborah after they (Deborah and Tennydard) promised to support the organisation in their demand for a separate Garoland," he said.

The GNLA, one of five Garo rebel groups fighting for a separate Garoland in western Meghalaya, is headed by police officer-turned-rogue Champion R. Sangma.

Champion Sangma is presently in Shillong Jail after he was arrested from the India-Bangladesh border July 30, 2012.