SHILLONG: Members of Hynniewtrep Youth Council (HYC) on Thursday shouted slogans demanding introduction of Inner Permit (ILP) in the state even as the Chief Minister DR Mukul Sangma arrived for the inauguration of the Mawlai C&RD block.
As the convoy of Chief Minister Mukul Sangma made its way to the venue at Mawlai Mawtawar, the members of HYC numbering not more than twenty stood on both sides of the road and shouted, “We want ILP.”
Addressing reporters later, HYC member Donboklang Kharlyngdoh said, “It is not a protest but we welcome him for ultimately executing the long pending Mawlai C&RD Block. But we want to show that apart from C& RD block, we urgently need the implementation of ILP to check influx and protect the indigenous community.”
He asserted that ILP was their main demand to tackle influx while they considered other laws are secondary options. He said so in reference to Meghalaya Residents’ Safety and Security Act.
“Illegal immigrants are the vote bank of national parties,” Kharlyngdoh said.
In stark contrast to the different kind of welcome staged by HYC, over hundred members of Mawlai Constituency Progressive Forum (MCPF) took out a procession to the venue welcoming the CM holding up placards that thanked him for the creation of C & RD block. One of the placards read, “Chief Minister, we are proud of you.”