Major goof up
SHILLONG: The KHADC witnessed some kind of a drama on Tuesday after the oath taking ceremony had to be re-conducted following lapses in the draft of the pledge which the newly elected MDCs had to read out.
Instead of the word ‘elected’, the pledge prepared by KHADC Legislative department secretary Augustine Shangpliang had mistakenly mentioned the word ‘nominated’.
While reading out the pledge, 25 out of the 28 MDCs stated “I….., having been nominated (instead of elected) as members of the district councils do swear in the name of God/solemnly affirm that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established, that I will uphold the sovereignty and integrity of India and that I will faithfully discharge the duty upon which I am about to enter.”
Only three MDCs – Pyniaid Sing Syiem (HSPDP), PT Sawkmie (KHNAM) and KP Pangniang (KHNAM) – read the pledge correctly using the word elected instead of nominated.
Strangely, nobody realized this major lapse until the end of the oath taking ceremony and adjournment of the House till February 6, which is the date for election of the new Chairman of the KHADC.
Even senior politicians like HDR Lyngdoh also failed to detect the error.
Taking cognizance of this lapse, East Khasi Hills Deputy Commissioner Sanjay Goyal, who was administering the oath of office, reconvened the House and restarted the oath taking ceremony.
While regretting the lapse, Goyal told the MDCs that there was a need to immediately rectify this lapse by reconvening the House.
All the 25 MDCs who wrongly read out the pledge had to take the oath once again.
JHADC MDCs sworn in
All the 29 newly-elected members of the Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council (JHADC) were sworn-in by West Jaintia Hills Deputy Commissioner Peter S Dkhar here on Tuesday.
The elected MDCs – including a lone woman member, 14 re-elected members and 13 new faces – solemnly swore in the name of God and pledged to faithfully perform their duties.
The ceremony concluded with the announcement of the election of the Chairman of the House to be held on Thursday.
Official sources informed that Ummulong-Moodymmai MDC Laitsing Shylla has filed four sets of nominations for the post of JHADC Chairman.
Sohryngkham MDC takes oath in Khasi
Setting a unique precedent, Sohryngkham MDC Pyniad Sing Syiem (HSPDP) took his oath in Khasi during the swearing-in ceremony of the newly-elected MDCs of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC), administered by district Deputy Commissioner Sanjay Goyal on Tuesday.
To the surprise of many who were present inside the House, Syiem translated the pledge and read it out in Khasi.
“I have taken the pledge in Khasi since this is one way to promote our own language. I want to show and exhibit to the people from outside the richness of the Khasi language,” the HSPDP MDC told newsmen after the ceremony.
He also informed that he had taken the oath in Khasi even during the filing of nomination.
“I strongly propagate the inclusion of the Khasi language in the Eight Schedule of the Constitution of India,” Syiem added.