Why would a young Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) desert the force, leave his wife and child and decide to venture onto a path of violence and life in the jungle? Nobody in Meghalaya seems to know the answer. But a 31-year-old Garo youth, well-trained in handling sophisticated arms and well-versed in the ways of the security forces, forming his own militant group is definitely a matter of concern for the state government and the police.
Champion R Sangma, posted as Assistant Commandant of the 2nd MLP Battalion at Goeragre in Garo hills, simply disappeared one year ago only to reappear last month when he confirmed that he was now the chairman of a militant group, Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA).
Although the GNLA is at a nascent stage, police officials say it has the potential of creating trouble in the Garo Hills. A senior police officer said that as Champion has undergone training at the police academy, he is well equipped with the latest method of guerilla warfare. “He can handle sophisticated weapons with ease,” he added. Further, Champion has managed to get former area commander of A’chik National Volunteers Council (ANVC) Sohan D Shira as his deputy, tied up with the NSCN (IM), and merged the Liberation Achik Elite Force (LAEF), another Garo militant group.
Champion hails from Songsak constituency in the East Garo Hills district which lags behind in development. East Garo Hills Superintendent of Police S Nongtyngar said despite repeated visits to his house, both at day and night, they have failed to locate him. Strangely, the police do not have records about his family background. Champion’s batchmates from the North Eastern Police Academy say he neither showed a militant streak nor gave an impression of a good cop in the making.
To garner public support, the GNLA has promised to eliminate corruption and malpractice and monitor the functioning of the government and transparency in the Garo Hills. It has promised to create awareness about the need for a movement for a separate sovereign state for the overall development of Garo Hills. All this, his batchmates observe, makes the GNLA’s aim more like those of the Maoists.
A batchmate added that as Champion knows how the police operate, his rebel group will be more challenging to neutralise than other militant groups. He said: “We cannot take the group lightly.”
Inspector General of Police (Special Branch) S K Jain, however, said: “The law will get him one day.” “Do not be fooled by all the ideological talk, the GNLA is a motley group of boys, some from the NSCN (IM), former members of the ANVC and members of the LAEF, who are out to make quick money. It does not appear that he has floated the militant outfit suddenly. He must have planned it and when he was ready, he deserted the police,” Jain said, adding, “during training he had problems, as per records he remained absent and was a habitual drinker.”
A postgraduate in Philosophy from the North Eastern Hills University and a 2004 MPS officer, Champion’s journey from the police to the jungles does not augur well for Meghalaya which has had a difficult past with militancy. It may also be a stumbling block in the peace talks between the Centre and the ANVC.
A batchmate of Champion said: “He is the second cop to desert the police and join a militant group after Constable Peter Marak, who was allegedly killed in an encounter.”
NCP legislator James Sangma has said that Champion must have left the police force because the Home department had delayed confirming his service and he felt harassed. But Chief Minister D D Lapang rebutted him saying that the Home department had delayed confirming his service because he did not have a good track record.