Meghalaya: Demand for ILP grows louder as CAB inches closer to become law

    10-Dec-2019
TNT
SHILLONG, Dec 10: The demand for implementation of Inner Line Permit (ILP) in Meghalaya is getting louder again as the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019 inches closer to become a law and following the decision of the Centre to implement ILP in Manipur.
The prominent pressure groups in the state are of the view that the decision of the BJP led NDA Government to provide ILP in Manipur is an attempt to divide the indigenous community of the North Eastern region.
It may be mentioned that the Manipur Government has declared a holiday on Tuesday to celebrate Manipur’s inclusion in the Inner Line Permit (ILP) system.
Speaking on the Citizenship Amendment Bill in Parliament on Monday, Union Home minister Amit Shah announced that Manipur would be brought under the purview of the ILP.
FKJGP president, Welbirth Rani said, “If the Government is really serious about protecting the indigenous community then it should take a decision to implement ILP through the North Eastern region. We all know that the people of Meghalaya has been fighting for the implementation of ILP for the past so many years.”
He said that the assurance given by the BJP led NDA that CAB would not be implemented in the scheduled areas of the State is only an eye-wash.
Rani said, “We all know that Meghalaya till date does not have strong mechanism or a legislation to tackle the problem of influx and illegal immigrant, and we would continue to oppose the CAB despite being passed in the Lok Sabha.”
He also said, that if the State Government is really serious about protecting the interest of the indigenous population of the State then they should immediately convene a session to pass a resolution to demand the implementation of ILP in the State.
“If the Centre can implement ILP in Manipur then it shouldn’t have a problem to implement the same in Meghalaya,” Rani added.
Meanwhile, the Confederation of Meghalaya Social Organisation (CoMSO) also urged upon the centre to immediately implement the same regulation in Meghalaya.
Chairman of CoMSO, Robert Kharjarin, on Monday said if the centre has decided to implement ILP in the Manipur then the same should be replicated in Meghalaya.
He also said that ILP and Sixth schedule are two different things and different legal aspects even as he added that there are no provisions in sixth schedule which deal with the regulation of entry of immigrants into the state.
“The sixth schedule deals with the protection of land, custom and culture while ILP deals with the regulation of entry of immigrants into the state and we deserve ILP,” he said.
Social work conducted
Our Correspondent
Thoubal, Dec 10: Locals, members of MAICHON (Manipur Imagi Changdamnapham Oiba Nachasing), Tractor owners and members of SWYC cleaned Charangpat to Yairipok road today.
The social work was conducted to keep the road clear of mud, debris left by tractors and other vehicles engaging in harvesting, said members of the SWYC.
Wangkhem AC MLA K Meghachandra Singh also took part in the social work.
The volunteers also cleaned the waiting shed between Charangpat and Yairipok and surroundings, said MAICHON secretary Arunjit Ningthouja and lauded social worker K Jadumani Singh and Kh Jiban Singh for their donations.