All six KSU leaders held over August 19 rally violence now on bail

All six Khasi Students' Union (KSU) leaders arrested over the violence during the union's August 19 rally in Shillong are now out on bail, after the last of them was released from Shillong District Jail on Friday, October 30.

Jeremaiah Pohthmi, assistant organising secretary of the KSU Central Executive Council and president of its Nongmensong unit, was granted bail by the District and Sessions Court, East Khasi Hills. He had been in custody since his arrest on October 3, The Shillong Times, Highland Post and Hub News reported.

Releases in quick succession

The six were freed over about a week:

• October 23: KSU president Raymond Kharjana and general secretary Reuben Najiar were released on bail.
• October 29: Samuel Kharbani and Banjoplang Dkhar, secretary and president of the union's Shillong Eastern (Mihngi) Circle, were freed. Kharbani had been arrested on September 3 and Dkhar on September 11.
• October 29: KSU vice-president Pynkmenlang Sanmiet, who had earlier been on interim bail, was granted regular bail on Thursday, according to The Shillong Times.
• October 30: Pohthmi was released, the last of the six.

Reports differ slightly on the count: Hub News, writing on Friday evening, said five of the six were out on bail with Pohthmi's release, while The Shillong Times, which also reported Sanmiet's regular bail, said all six were now free.

The case

The arrests followed clashes during the KSU's black-flag bike rally in Shillong on August 19. Bail allows the leaders to leave custody while the case continues; it is not a finding on the charges, which are yet to be tested in court.

Najiar had earlier been given a 14-day interim bail in September after the death of his father.

Union back in the spotlight

The releases come as the KSU is again active on several fronts. This week it said Union Health Minister JP Nadda had promised a committee on its demands over recruitment at NEIGRIHMS in Shillong, with no hiring until the issues are settled. The union has also accused the state government of intimidating women in Laban who oppose the planned Shillong Peak ropeway.