A local businessman, choosing to remain anonymous, has alleged that he received a demand note from Synshar Khymdeit, who claimed to be the area collector of the proscribed Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC). The allegation was made in a letter addressed to Shillong Press Club President, Deimaia Siangshai. Although dated April 7, 2025, the letter was only recently received by Siangshai. In the letter, the businessman noted that Khymdeit had previously addressed a press conference at the Shillong Press Club on August 1, 2023, where he denied any involvement in issuing demand notes on behalf of the HNLC.
The businessman recalled that this denial came a day after Khymdeit’s name surfaced in a vernacular newspaper report, in which a woman from Mawlai accused him of serving her with a demand note of Rs 20 lakh. Prior to that, Khymdeit had also been named in similar reports identifying him as the HNLC’s area collector for East Khasi Hills and Ri-Bhoi. The businessman disclosed that he first received a demand note on January 28, 2022, allegedly issued by two HNLC area collectors—Wallamjingsuk Barim and Synshar Khymdeit—demanding Rs 4.4 lakh as “tax money”.
Quoting the demand note, the businessman said it read: “Dear taxpayer, you are hereby informed that the last date for payment of annual income tax to the HNLC is 03.03.2022. As a new establishment, you are required to pay a tax amount of Rs 4.4 lakh. Please keep the money ready by the mentioned date to avoid any unpleasant consequences. You are also reminded that failure to cooperate will compel us to take other steps to recover the amount. If you inform the police, we will plant a bomb at your doorstep—you will lose your family and everyone you love. Trust us, we don’t joke. By the end of this month, we will bomb Police Bazaar to remind people like you that you don’t belong here. So, pay up or die.”