SHILLONG, Feb 6: Congress spokesperson Zenith Sangma on Saturday said the state government should expeditiously implement the Meghalaya Resident Safety and Security Act (MRSSA) in its original form since the Centre did not seem serious about granting the Inner-Line Permit (ILP) to the state.
Recalling that Meghalaya Governor Satya Pal Malik had shared his concerns about the ILP with a Congress team that met him, Sangma said it would be wiser to implement MRSSA it the Centre could not be convinced to grant the travel permit.
Finding merit in the Governor’s statement, the Congress spokesperson said: “He is correct to a great extent. Since implementation of ILP is not within the jurisdiction of the state government, we should come up with a similar mechanism to protect the interest of the indigenous citizens of Meghalaya.”
This was the very reason why the Congress-legislated MRSSA, 2016, he said. “This is a very comprehensive and strong law prepared in a way to avoid judicial intervention,” he added, slamming the MDA government for amending the Act.
Sangma said the entry-exit point at Umling, called facilitation centre, has been doing what ILP would have. He pointed out that a task force had been constituted to implement ILP in every district with the Deputy Commissioner as the chairman and in all 29 blocks under the respective labour inspector.
“ILP will let people be scrutinised at the entry point but MRSSA 2016 will help scrutinise people anywhere in the state because landowners and house owners have to furnish details of tenants to the local authorities within 15 days of occupancy,” Sangma said.
“If MRSSA 2016 is implemented in totality, where is the scope of any influx or for outsiders to hide anywhere in the state?” he asked.
Sangma said the MDA government could have amended MRSSA because it was enacted during the Congress regime. “They probably did not want us to get the credit,” he added.
ILP must: Ampareen
Senior Congress leader Ampareen Lyngdoh, on the other hand, is of the view that even if ILP is implemented in Meghalaya, the state can overcome all challenges to livelihood and investment with time.
Reacting to the Governor’s views on ILP, Lyngdoh admitted that there would be some impact of ILP on tourism and other related sectors but those can be overcome with time.
Taking a cue from the Governor’s statement that the basic fear of the population of Meghalaya is influx, Lyngdoh added that there is a substance in the debate that ILP should be implemented in the state.
Lyngdoh said that the demand for ILP in Meghalaya becomes more highlighted in view of the fact that the central government is now putting deadlines for the implementation of CAA and even rules are being framed.