Photo Courtesy: India Today Group
Shillong: Meghalaya minister Sanbor Shullai fled a public hearing Wednesday as protesters swarmed him over the proposed Shillong Peak ropeway. Security officers escorted the BJP leader out after the crowd erupted during the meeting at South Shillong. Tensions spiked when attendees claimed the minister denied them time to air their grievances. Protesters shouted shame and demanded his resignation while the Joint Action Committee reaffirmed their total opposition.
Shullai called the unrest a political stunt. He questioned if the agitators actually cared about environmental risks. He proposed an expert panel to study the complaints. Government officials intended the meeting to collect local feedback on the 913-metre transit line planned to connect Madan Laban to Shillong Peak. The minister stated, "The government was willing to explain the project and address environmental concerns raised by residents."
Locals fear the construction will wreck nearby water sources and catchment areas. The Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council already blocked the plan, citing a lack of trading licences and missing clearances. Meghalaya Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh refuses to kill the project. He insists the state will keep holding talks to smooth over public opposition.
Updated at 12th November 2026 at 6:00pm
The Wednesday meeting at the State Convention Centre devolved into chaos as protesters and security personnel clashed. JAC members alleged that Shullai arrived with a pre-written resolution and silenced dissenters, only allowing a few women to speak before cutting the session short. The committee further accused the minister's security staff of manhandling elderly women during the exit. Olivia Mawlong, a member of the group, slammed the event as a sham, saying organizers had no intention of hosting an actual dialogue.
Shullai fired back, naming former Congress candidate Vinetia Mawlong as a political agitator behind the disruption. He claimed the advisory committee had invited 26 local organizations to the table. The minister defended the project's technical viability, stating that government data puts the ropeway alignment 3.15 kilometres from Lum Shyllong, with all support towers clear of the Umiam catchment area and the closest spring at least one kilometre away. He asserted that the project already holds clearances from the Ministry of Defence, the Airports Authority of India, and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, alongside a local noc issued in January 2023.
The standoff coincides with an ongoing sit-in at Barik, where protesters have remained for five days demanding the project be scrapped or moved entirely. With no consensus reached, the government remains at an impasse with the local groups.
Updated at 13th November 2026 at 11:00am
The conflict has now spilled into the courts. The 19-South Shillong Advisory Committee filed a police complaint seeking an FIR against JAC members and the chairman of the Green-Tech Foundation for allegedly disrupting Wednesday's meeting and attempting to physically restrain the minister. The committee claims protesters shouted political slogans instead of providing technical feedback and acted to intimidate Shullai during his exit.
A separate complaint hit the Laban Police Station on November 11. Ladaphila Kharbuli accuses activists of defamation, alleging that a social media video branded her son and son-in-law as gangsters and fake security personnel. She maintains the men were merely attempting to protect the minister during the fracas. Meanwhile, JAC president Deborah Marbaniang has rejected the proposed expert panel outright, accusing Shullai of fabricating claims that 99 percent of meeting attendees supported his resolution.
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