Somala opposes village Bill terms

SHILLONG: The Social Organizations of Meghalaya against Land Alienation (SOMALA) has opposed the usage of the term, “inhabitants of the village” in the KHAD (Village Administration Bill) as according to the organization the same may include any citizen of India.
SOMALA pointed out that Paragraph 5 of the Bill contains powers and functions of the traditional institution and Clause VIII of this paragraph states “may issue residential certificates to inhabitants of the village”.
It said that the Sixth Schedule to the Indian Constitution is exclusively in place for the welfare of the tribals, the Khasi, Garo and Jaintia and that the District Council has erred.
It claimed that the District Council has relied on Article 19 of the Constitution to justify the inclusion of the term “inhabitants of the village”.