SHILLONG, April 17 � After its seven day surrender offer was ignored by the Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA), Meghalaya police today asserted it would now be �ruthless� against the militant outfit.
�We would be ruthless against the GNLA now. They were warned that they must surrender,� Director General of Police N Ramachandran told The Assam Tribune over phone from New Delhi.
Last week, Meghalaya police served the GNLA a deadline of seven days to surrender with their weapons. The militant outfit, however, gave scant respect to the ultimatum.
�It (surrender deadline) was more of a warning to the unarmed cadres of the outfit to leave the camps before the police launches a major offensive,� Ramachandran, who is in New Delhi in connection with the Chief Ministers� conference on internal security, said.
According to police estimates, there are about 120 -130 unarmed cadres in the GNLA camps, mostly teenagers. He said that the police does not want to shed �unnecessary blood� and therefore has given adequate time to the young cadres to decide about their future.
Till date, Ramachandran said, the police have hesitated to carry out a full-fledged operation against the GNLA because of the unarmed young boys in the camps. �We would plan out our strategies again, but, we have set ourselves no timeframe,� he informed.
The operations against the GNLA are being carried out by a group of security forces drawn from the State police, Border Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force and Commando Battalion for Resolute Action.
Recently, the operating security forces managed to waylay a group of GNLA and shoot down four of its cadres, some hardcore, in East Garo Hills district.
The DGP, meanwhile, said that the security agencies fighting the GNLA are �confident� of the weaponry under its possession for the operations.
