By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: The Meghalaya Pradesh Mahila Congress Committee president Joplin Shylla said on Wednesday the indigenous population in Meghalaya and the North East will be overwhelmed by foreigners if the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill is implemented.
The Mahila Congress committee held a protest march on Wednesday by walking around Khyndailad as the Deputy Commissioner of East Khasi Hills did not grant them permission to protest in front of BJP office in view of Section 144 being imposed.
Speaking to reporters, Shylla said jobs in Meghalaya are saturated and people are struggling to get a livelihood.
State Mahila Congress chief questioned the move of the BJP to grant citizenship to foreigners. She added that they will continue to protest till the Bill is withdrawn.
The Synjuk ki Nongsynshar Shnong ka Bri U Hynniewtrep (SNSBH) has also taken up the issue of the citizenship bill.
A delegation of the Synjuk members met the deputy chief minister on Monday to discuss on the Citizenship Amendment Bill, Village Development Plan, MUDA bylaws and the latest status of the amendment to the Sixth Schedule.
The Synjuk wants to appeal the Centre to exempt Meghalaya and other northeastern states from the purview of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, which “will have detrimental effect on the future of the Hynniewtrep community and will endanger the existence of the tribal community”.
Stating that the Cabinet ministers will likely meet Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday, he said the Synjuk has also opposed the Constitution Amendment Bill.
Other than expressing their opposition to the two bills, president of the Synjuk Werlok Kharshiing said the state minister should remind the Union Home Minister to place the amendment of the Sixth Schedule at the earliest.
They also spoke about the long pending issues such as the application of MUDA bylaws to scheduled areas in which the government also decided to de-notify the order of 1989.
“About MUDA issue, Prestone (Tynsong) said they will have a Cabinet meeting and after the Cabinet passes it then a formal announcement will be made,” Kharshiing said.
Meanwhile, general secretary of the Synjuk RL Blah said they also apprised Tynsong of the Village Government Plan – GPDP/ My Village my plan as the village heads, especially in rural areas, are not clear on the concept of a ‘facilitator’.
“Usually, a facilitator should be a headman and if a new one is elected, the administration in the village/town will be crippled. We have asked him (Tynsong) for clarification on the matter,” he said.
Kharshiing said the traditional heads expressed apprehension as the funds are from the Ministry of Panchayati Raj Ministry.