Kharshiing wants Assembly to discuss rights of traditional bodies

SHILLONG: Chairman of the Grand Council of Chiefs of Meghalaya John F Kharshiing has sent a letter to Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, urging him to take steps to resolve the issues mentioned in the Governor’s address through an all party discussion in the Assembly at the earliest.
In the letter addressed to the chief minister, Kharshiing sought for resolutions on synergy between the rights of the traditional institutions as per the Instrument of Accession and Annexed Agreement of August 17, 1948.
Kharshiing urged the government to take initiative to resolve the decades old constitutional anomaly, so as to facilitate and provide opportunity for the formalisation and recognition of the various levels of Dorbar within the Constitution of India.
Turning to the Governor’s address on District Council Affairs, he said, “If the Governor’s address is to be believed then all political parties led by the state government should discuss as to how the district councils are to deliver basic civic services including water supply, sanitation including septic management, sewage and solid waste management, storm water drainage, maintenance of community assets, maintenance of roads, footpaths, street lighting, burial grounds and any other basic service within powers and functions being assigned to them.”
Kharshiing further said that the state is awaiting the central government’s response to the resolutions passed by the earlier Assembly in 2015 and 2016 and their recent commitment to recognize the Khasi, Jaintia and Garo peoples’ land, forest and mineral rights so as to comply with clause 2 and clause 5 of the Instrument of Accession and Annexed Agreement.
The letter also requested the chief minister for a meeting with the traditional heads to allow them to highlight the Constitutional anomalies within the Constitution of India.