SHILLONG: Mawkynrew village, about 37 km from Shillong, was put under curfew on Monday after a violent clash broke out between the police and locals over a disputed land allotment for building the Ramakrishna Mission (RKM) School.
The violence began when villagers approached the construction site, seeking to reclaim land adjacent to the school. The site had been previously allotted to a local football club for a sports ground.
Police personnel, deployed on the directive of the High Court, prevented the villagers from entering the school premises.
In the ensuing scuffle, officers fired tear gas to disperse the crowd. Twelve people, including a pregnant woman and five police personnel, were injured.
The East Khasi Hills District Magistrate, RM Kurbah, subsequently imposed a curfew in the village, citing the risk of further clashes that could disrupt peace and result in loss of life and property. “There is a serious deterioration of law and order in the area with reports of vandalism and violence at the school,” the order stated.
The RKM School, established in 2022, serves as the sole educational institution in the area, providing classes from Nursery to Class 5 for 168 students. The ongoing construction of its building has become a flashpoint in the community.
The school’s Sohra secretary described the incident as “unfortunate” and emphasized that the institution has been beneficial to local children and has provided employment to area residents.
Kitborlang Mukhim, the Acting Sordar of Mawkynrew Pyllun, denied claims of unfairly giving the land to the RKM. He said the land transfer was approved in a Dorbar meeting on August 25, 2020, led by the previous Sordar, N Shylla. Another Dorbar in Mawlein village supported the decision in November 2021, and a deed of gift was signed between Mukhim and the RKM Sohra Branch on September 8, 2020.
Mukhim also clarified that the earlier allotment of the land to the football club in 2015 was superseded by the 2021 decision to allocate the plot to the RKM for educational purposes. He expressed surprise that Tanbor Surong, president of the football club and a signatory to the 2021 decision, later filed a case against him over the land allotment.
However, former Sordar of Mawlein, P Wankhar, and leader of the Sur U Paidbah of Mawkynrew and Mawlein, claimed that the villagers had no intention of dismantling the school. He said the Acting Sordar of Mawkynrew Dorbar Pyllun treated Raid land as his own property and made decisions without talking to the two villages. Wankhar asked for a permanent Sordar to be appointed to fix the problem.
