SHILLONG: The failure of the government to amend the Meghalaya Residents Safety and Security Act, 2016 has come under fire from the Chairman of Confederation of Hynniewtrep Social Organization (CoHSO).
Speaking to The Shillong Times, chairman of CoHSO, Robert Kharjahrin, said the organisation should be informed about the provisions proposed by the state government in the amended bill.
He said, “First of all, we condemn the government for failing to pass the amended bill in the last session. They had assured us to pass the amended bill in this session, but they were too slow.”
Stating that they welcomed the move of the state government to strengthen the Act, he, however, said the organisation should be privy to the provisions incorporated in the amended bill.
“We need to see whether the provision of Inner Line Permit (ILP) system is there. So we need to see the bill first before we reach any conclusion,” he said.
The organisation has revived the demand for ILP in the wake of alleged threat posed by the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill.
Kharjahrin demanded the government speed up the process of implementation of ILP in the state.
He informed that the Confederation of Meghalaya Social Organization, which is a joint association of CoHSO and All Garo Hill Joint Action Committee, will soon discuss their next move after failure of the government to pass the bill.
The CoHSO has pushed for the amendment of the Act which should include four proposals — legal provision to bar an Indian or a foreigner from entering the state without valid permission, penalty for persons entering the state without valid permission, validity period of the permission not more than 179 days and preventing other tribals from buying land in the state.
