SHILLONG, April 11: Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s failure to keep his date with Meghalaya over the ILP issue has predictably provided fodder to the Opposition to embarrass the ruling MDA.
The Opposition Congress on Sunday attacked the NPP-led coalition for bending down to the whims and fancies of the centre who is taking the present dispensation “as a joke”.
Stating that the Union Home Minister had made a fake promise to the people of the state, Congress leader, Ampareen Lyngdoh said, “He has totally ignored the recommendations of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly alongside the request by the public for passing of the ILP resolution brought in by the government.”
“It is not only a fake promise but it is also completely ignoring the federal structure of our country wherein states make recommendations to the Government of India. We do not do things in vain. It is done with a purpose because we know that it is the mandate of the democracy,” she said.
According to her this indifference is a sign of a weak state government that is bending down to the whims and fancies of the Centre which is not taking the coalition seriously.
Lashing out at the current dispensation, she said, “We have never seen a government in the past promising anything when they know it is not within their mandate. We have consultations and place it before the Centre for approval but in this case (ILP) the Centre is completely ignoring the right of the state.”
Referring to the failed promised visit of the Union Home Minister to the state to discuss the ILP issue with all the stakeholders, she said, “Now it is beyond expectations and we do not even expect him to come anymore and we think that he is taking this government as a big joke. Whatever the MDA Government has said appears to have been taken as a big joke by the central government.”
“This has never happened in the past and it is quite unfortunate,” she added.