Harijan Colony issue
SHILLONG: The four-member delegation of the Punjab Government headed by Cabinet Minister, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, on Thursday urged the Meghalaya government to settle the Harijan Colony issue once and for all.
The delegation submitted a letter on behalf of the Punjab Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh, to Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma through Home Minister James Sangma.
They also held a meeting with the home minister as the chief minister was in Tura.
Later, speaking to reporters, Randhawa said the Harijan Colony issue keeps on coming up again and again and the delegation wants the issue to be settled once and for all.
He also added that whatever is decided by the High Level Committee, would be offered to the settlers of the community.
Randhawa said the delegation is very satisfied with the meeting with the home minister and added that they want a long lasting solution to the entire issue.
The Punjab leader also expressed concern over the safety and security of Sikh community living in the state in view of the recent threat issued by the banned HNLC.
“Meghalaya government is sincere to come out with a solution and they want to restore normalcy,” he said while maintaining that they have full faith in the state government that it would resolve the issue amicably.
He admitted that there was fear among the settlers after they received threats from the local militant group and the committee as tried to instill confidence in them.
“They (settlers) have full confidence in Meghalaya government”, he said, while admitting that the Sikh community is not afraid of living here and the government has assured that they are bound to take care of every community staying in Meghalaya.
Later, the home minister told reporters that the government is taking every possible step to ensure the safety and security of the Sikh community in Meghalaya and the delegation has expressed its satisfaction with the security arrangements of the Meghalaya government.
According to Sangma, the state government is trying to bring back normalcy even as he maintained that the delegation of Punjab government came to Shillong to assess the situation and they are satisfied over the security arrangements and the delegation once back in Punjab would be testimony to the fact that the government is doing its best to take care of every community, including the Sikh community.
During the meeting, the home minister requested the delegation to spread the message in Punjab that the government is doing everything to resolve the issue.
Stating that while certain elements are trying to misinterpret things in Meghalaya, he added that the government wants a peaceful solution and it would not tolerate statements being made from anyone to vitiate the environment.
When asked about the recent HNLC threat, he said it does not matter from where the threat comes but the government is taking every situation seriously and the home department has been asked to beef up security to ensure that no untoward incident takes place.
Earlier on Wednesday, the committee of the Punjab government, had visited the Harijan Colony and interacted with the residents.