SHILLONG: The Seng Khasi Seng Kmie (SKSK) has lauded BJP MP Tarun Vijay for raising the issue to recognise the Khasi and Jaintia community who belongs to the traditional faith as a minority like other scheduled tribes in the country including other parts of the North Eastern region.
The BJP MP, recently submitted a petition to the Chairman of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Justice KG Balakrishnan on the grave violation of human rights of the minority Seng Khasi tribals of Meghalaya.
“The other scheduled tribes who are following their own traditional faith are getting dual recognition both as the minority and also as the scheduled tribes.”
“But the Khasi and Jaintia community who are following the traditional faith are still not recognized as minority,” SKSK general secretary Bantei S Rumnong said here on Sunday.
He said that even the Khasi and Jaintia community who have becomes Christians are recognised as minority besides their scheduled tribes status.
“The Seng Khasi Seng Kmie had submitted a petition in this connection with the former Minister of Minority Affairs Salman Khursheed,” Nongrum said.
As per his knowledge, he said that Chief Minister Dr Mukul Sangma has taken up this issue with various concerned ministries through the Education and Social Welfare department.
“But I do not the status about the move of the Chief Minister,” he said.
SKSK general secretary however said that they have panel of experts who are helping them in getting the minority status for the Khasi and Jaintia people as per the Constitution.
Mentionably, in his petition to the NHRC chairman, Vijay had stated that for strange reasons majority of Meghalaya is getting minority benefits and the real minority is denied all union and state level schemes meant for the minorities.
During the meeting, the BJP MP had recalled that even the then chairman of the Minorities Commission Dr Tahir Mahmood had written in his report in March 1999 that state department must set up a Minorities Department , a four member state minorities commission and a finance corporation for minorities.
“But nothing has been done by state government, dominated by Christian minority so far. A segment of the society which enjoys minority rights nationwide is denying the same rights to another minority,” Vijay said. He said that it’s ironical that 90% of population is getting minority benefits while 10% population is denied those rights.
Meanwhile, Human Rights Defense International General Secretary Rajesh Gogna who accompanied Vijay while meeting the National Human Rights Commission chairman however stated Human Rights stated that despite fulfilling all constitutional requirements to be declared as minority, the brave and patriotic Seng Khasi tribals ,professing indigenous faith, are being discriminated creating an identity crisis.
“This is an assault on the constitutional provisions as well as the famous Supreme Court judgement of 2002 that specifically asked that all linguistic and religious minorities who have been put at par in Article 30 have to be considered state wise,” Gogna said.
