CM to meet HM for CAB exemption
SHILLONG: Under pressure, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma would lead a cabinet delegation to Delhi on Thursday to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah to apprise him about the need to exempt entire Meghalaya from the purview of CAB.
“Our demand to the Centre is to keep strengthening various provisions of the Act so that protection can be given to the people of the state,” Sangma told reporters on Wednesday.
Stating that NPP has been very clear from day one that the people of the state must be given protection, he added that one of the concerns was that people would continuously come from Bangladesh.
“This was the concern that the MP of the NPP and the state government had raised. This particular issue has been addressed to a very large extent by ensuring that there will be a cut-off date. As of now, information available with me indicates that in the whole of Meghalaya there is only one person who had applied for citizenship under this particular Act. There is no question of any person applying anymore. This issue of putting a cut-off date has ensured that the concerns of people about Bangladeshi Hindus coming to Meghalaya have been addressed,” he said.
According to the chief minister, Meghalaya may need special provisions, one of them being total exemption from the bill.
When asked about the growing demand for implementing ILP in the state, he said the state government has been discussing the matter with various organisations adding that the government has been debating on this internally as well.
“But Meghalaya Residents Safety and Security Act is a provision made by the state government and this is something which is within our control. It was decided earlier also and if the Residents Act comes in, it will be a mechanism which will serve the same purpose as ILP. Therefore, we are stressing on this. It is for this reason we have come to meet the Governor. We are waiting and hopeful that the governor will take a positive decision”, he said.