The vicious act of savagery committed on Vikash Nandwani a non-tribal trader on October 9 reeks of extreme barbarism. There are no words strong enough to condemn such a crime. Unfortunately the condemnations have been tardy in coming. But condemnations alone are not much good. This is a time when society must reflect on why such acts have gained ascendancy and whether such hate pogroms can be allowed in a civilised society. For the last one month much damage has been done to the image of the state which claims to be a tourist destination. Narratives of crime and violence travel fast in this age of social media. Meghalaya is hard-selling its tourism prospects. Tourists choose to visit places where they can be at ease and travel without hindrance. They don’t want to be told that they cannot walk out of their hotels beyond 7 or 8 pm in the evening. No tourist place sets such embargo on visitors.
Recently tour operators from Khasi and Jaintia Hills came together to express their discontent at the ongoing tussle between Government and pressure groups, over the implementation of the Inner Line Permit for visitors to Meghalaya. Tour operators believe that the ILP which is equivalent to a visa for entering one’s own country, is outdated and a stumbling block to tourism. Indeed tourism in this State has picked up very well in the last five years. More local people have become stakeholders in tourism projects. Revenue earned from this trade is filtering down to the villages where people earn from selling food and other items. Those who propose mechanisms that will take away that livelihood must understand that they will not get the support they need.
Meanwhile the law and order situation in Meghalaya is not very upbeat. While two activists of the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) have been booked for the October 9 incident there is scepticism from all quarters as to whether police have enough ammunition to make the charges stick. Citizens are now so used to police ineptitude that they have given up hope of ever seeing justice delivered. This is not a very happy situation. Perhaps what Government needs to do at this point is to completely revamp the Police Department beginning at the top. Cops must be given a free hand to operate but they also must be told in no uncertain terms that they have to deliver or face the music. People have shown enough patience. Now that patience is running out. The next step is for lynch mobs to run riot. Surely this is undesirable for a State with a Government that has been given the mandate to govern. And the basic premise of governance is to ensure that the rule of law prevails.