SHILLONG: Chief Executive Member (CEM) of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) Latiplang Kharkongor said that in the Sixth Schedule, there is no provision to check influx and it is a state subject.
With talks of Centre exempting the Sixth Schedule areas from the purview of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (CAB), voices of dissent against the CAB surfaced as to how can influx be tackled even as the Council has been in existence since 1952 and demanded for exemption from the whole state.
“The Sixth Schedule is about protection and preservation of traditional institutions, culture, land and property. Then there are concerns that the Bills passed in the Council are pending in the District Council Affairs Department”, he said.
Kharkongor added that the Council will follow up on the pending bills.
Appeal to support
CAB protest
The Education Cell of the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) has urged the schools, colleges and universities to close down their educational institutions on Tuesday to support the protest against the CAB.
The protest will start from 5 am to 4 pm on Tuesday.
In a statement issued here, the union has urged the schools to postpone the dates of examination of the respective educational institutions.
Meanwhile, the Dorbar Shnong Kynshi Pyllun, which consists of 6 villages, has supported the protest called by NESO on Tuesday.
The Dorbar Pyllun, has directed the offices, business establishments, banks, schools, petrol pumps in Kynshi Pyllun, to remain closed on the day.
It has directed that commercial vehicles from Mawsarong and Mawpun to not come out on that day and has urged the private vehicles to not ply on the road except in emergency cases. Media persons are not barred.
Congress MLA Process Sawkmie said that the Union Home Minister Amit Shah did not respect the sentiments and the demand of political parties, NGOs of the state to completely exempt the CAB from Meghalaya.
He said that the adamant attitude of the Centre to go ahead with the Bill shows the arrogant behaviour of the government towards Meghalaya and the North East as a whole.
Sawkmie welcomed the decision of the state government o call for total exemption of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill and has urged the political parties in the state to work together for the interest of the state.
The state Council of the Communist Party of India (CPI) opposed the
CAB and said that the proposed amendments to the Citizenship Act will totally invert the secular character of Indian Citizenship as envisioned by the Constitution makers as the Centre is replacing it with the majoritarian designs of the BJP-RSS.
A statement from the party stated that the plans to impose NRC nationwide will only create hatred and animosity between communities and will put strain on the secular and democratic fabric of the Constitution and society.
