By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Thursday said that the vexed boundary dispute between Assam and Meghalaya should be solved between the two Governments via a mediator.
The statement came from the Assam Chief Minister during his two-day visit to Shillong at a time when Pynskhemlang Nongshlong and others are holding a fast-unto-death in Langpih demanding an early solution to the dispute.
Talking to media persons here, Gogoi said, “According to me Langpih belongs to Assam but according to Meghalaya it’s their land so this matter should be resolved between the two states.”
When asked why he was averse to the joint Boundary Commission proposal, Gogoi said that even Meghalaya had rejected the report of the Chandrachud Committee.
“What is the point of wasting time when the report of the Committee is not binding on the states,” he told reporters here while adding that the reports of such committees are usually accepted by one state and rejected by the other.
According to Gogoi, boundary disputes are sensitive and take time to be solved.
“Even a dispute between two brothers over a plot of land takes time to be solved,” he said.
While admitting that there are instances of encroachment by police of both the states, Gogoi stated that both the states are restrained even though both states claim the land to be their own.
He also stated that Meghalaya could take the legal recourse of moving the Supreme Court over the dispute if they feel so, as Assam has also moved the Supreme Court over its dispute with Nagaland.
“Many people are accusing me in the same way that they blame the Meghalaya Chief Minister over the dispute but we are still trying to restrain ourselves from over-reaction over the boundary dispute,” he said.
When asked about an assurance from Assam as demanded by the activists at Langpih, Gogoi said, “Our response is that Langpih is part of Assam but we are maintaining the greatest restraint.”
Gogoi also stated that even Assam will submit all the legal documents to Meghalaya over its claims in the disputed areas.
Altogether there are twelve areas of difference between the two neighboring states of Assam.
The activists on fast-unto-death at Langpih on Wednesday outrightly rejected an assurance letter from the Meghalaya Government saying that the letter did not address any of the demands that the agitators have put forth to the Government.