Govt yet to give nod to bill barring non-tribals in polls

SHILLONG: The state government is yet to approve the bill passed by the KHADC last year to bar non-tribals from taking part in the district council election.
KHADC chief executive member HS Shylla said on Tuesday that though the KHADC passed the bill, the government is yet to give its nod.
In November last year, the KHADC had passed the KHADC (Constitution and the Procedure and Conduct of Business) Rules, 2018 to amend the Assam and Meghalaya Autonomous Districts (Constitution of District Councils) rules, 1951, to ensure that only Khasis vote in the district council polls.
Traditionally, the non-tribals had abstained from either voting or standing for elections in KHADC and JHADC polls unlike Garo Hills where there are elected non-tribal MDCs.
However, the rule 128 (1) (d) of Assam and Meghalaya Autonomous Districts (Constitution of District Councils) rules, 1951, states that a person not belonging to a scheduled tribe specified in part XI-Meghalaya, of the Schedule to the Constitution (Schedule Tribes) Order, 1950, as amended up to date will not be entitled to vote unless he is a permanent resident within the territorial limits of the autonomous district.
According to the rule, a person is deemed to be a permanent resident within the territorial limits of an autonomous district if he has taken up his fixed or permanent habitation with his family or made his permanent home in that district and resided continually therein for a period of not less than 12 years on the qualifying date.
128 (1) (b) also speaks about a qualified voter as “a citizen of India and ordinary resident in a constituency for not less than 180 days during the qualifying period”.