Govt playing politics on headmen issue, Lanong claims

SHILLONG: Accusing the State government of politicizing the issue of Rangbah Shnong in the context of the ruling of the High Court of Meghalaya, the UDP has demanded that the Meghalaya Local Administration (Empowerment of Traditional Institutions, Traditional Bodies and Headmen in Governance Delivery System) Ordinance, 2015 should immediately be revoked.
“The matter would have been resolved if the Government had passed the Village Administration Bill, 2015. The ruling of the Court would have died its natural death,” UDP working president Bindo Mathew Lanong told newsmen here on Wednesday.
He lamented that the State government had played politics over the issue.
According to Lanong, the Bill is in the State government’s court but it does not want to forward the same to the Governor for assent. “They want to take it up themselves to gain political mileage,” Lanong alleged.
Questioning the jumbo-sized committee headed by former Chief Minister D.D. Lapang, he said that the committee was given two months after it was constituted on March 4.
“The committee never met until the expiry of its deadline. We could not meet to either discuss or to give suggestion. Here also the Government betrayed the faith and confidence extended by the people who attended the meeting and now, they have acted arbitrarily by issuing the ordinance,” he said, while demanding that the Ordinance be revoked since the State government does not have the authority to formulate any legislation to empower the traditional institutions.
According to Lanong, under the State List Para 5 of the Seventh Schedule, the State Government can make laws only for the purpose of supporting the areas of local self government like municipal, panchayat, district council and other institutions.
The UDP working president said that in this case, the KHADC does not require the support of the State Government. “We are all aware that the district council had forwarded the Village Administration Bill and recently sent an amended version after correcting some shortcomings. As per my contention, the situation will be resolved if the State Government forwards it to the Governor for his assent,” he added.