SHILLONG: The petition jointly filed by as many as eight Dollois or Acting Dollois of different Elakas in West Jaintia Hills district challenging their suspension order by JHADC will come up for hearing on November 8.
The petition was taken up on Thursday by the High Court of Meghalaya.
During the course of submissions, it transpired that the petitioners had also filed a title suit that was pending in the Court of Assistant to Deputy Commissioner of Jowai.
However, the petitioners now filed an application seeking to withdraw their case pending in Jowai, which was opposed by the respondent JHADC with the submission that the petitioners ought to come out with a specific undertaking not to indulge in illegal collection of toll/taxes.
The title suit was to come up in the trial court on November 7 and the High Court wanted the parties to request the trial court to take a final decision on the application for withdrawal at the earliest.
The High Court also noted that in another writ petition, the association of cement manufacturing companies located in various parts of East Jaintia Hills had questioned the collection of toll/taxes by the Dollois.
The Court said looking at the subject-matter of the fresh petition and the larger issues involved, it appears appropriate that this petition be heard along with the petition of the cement companies, which is under the Division Bench. In this context, the matter will be placed before the Chief Justice for appropriate assignment.
It was on October 20 that the JHADC suspended as many as seven dollois and removed three acting dollois for allegedly violating the rules and instructions of Council on the issue of collection of taxes by these traditional heads.
