Wednesday, April 2, 2025

Night road blockade from tomorrow

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By Our Reporter

 Shillong: Toughening their stand on the issue of ‘doubtful’ voters, three organizations — KSU, FKJGP and Hynniewtrep National Youth Front (HNYF) — have jointly called a two- night road blockade from Wednesday.

Three organisations announced this decision at a public rally held at Motphran here on Monday.

The night road blockade, to be effective in the Khasi-Jaintia Hills, will commence from 8pm and will continue till 5am on Wednesday and Thursday.

Coming down hard on the State election department, the FKJGP working president Joe Marwein said no specific measures has been initiated by the department against proliferation of voters with doubtful antecedents. “This has been done with a motive to wipe out the indigenous people,” he said. “At present, one could notice that the indigenous community is already imperilled by the rampant infiltration of non-indigenous groups, including foreigners from Bangladesh and Nepal”, Marwein said.

He claimed election officials in Meghalaya have detected several “dubious entries” in the electoral roll but cannot take action due to “political pressure”.

Meanwhile, KSU president Daniel Khyriem questioned the functioning of the special counters for enrolment of voters at the deputy commissioners’ offices in all the districts stating that most of the people from outside do not even have proper documents to stake their claim as Indian citizens. “Yet, the authorities blindly enlist them as voters,” he said.

He said if the government fails to close down these special counters, the organisations would intensify their agitation.

Maintaining that the social organisations were not anti-Indian in their stance, the speakers urged the legislators, members of the district council and headmen to stop issuing residential certificates to people coming from outside.

The NGOs also lambasted the government for not being able to implement any of the mechanisms to check rampant infiltration which included the Inner Line Permit, Work Permit, and three-tier identity card system.

Lampooning the government, the HNYF president GH Kharshanlor said, “It is easier to get an Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC) rather than a SIM card.”

The NGOs last week had written to Chief Minister Dr Mukul Sangma to stop enrolment of doubtful voters.

 

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