SHILLONG, April 22: A Writ Petition challenging the constitutional validity of entry-exit gates in the state was taken up by a Division Bench of the High Court of Meghalaya on Thursday. The Court directed the state government to submit its response to the specific allegations seeking closure of such gates.
The Court heard the advocates for both the parties including the Advocate General, and then directed that, “List this matter three weeks hence, for further consideration.”
Meanwhile, the chief secretary has been directed to file an affidavit giving the official justification of the decision.
The PIL filed in the High Court seeking the closure of the entry point/tourist facilitation centre at Umling in Ri Bhoi district was first listed for hearing before the division bench of the Court last week.
The petitioners in the PIL claimed that the Meghalaya Residents’ Safety and Security Act (MRSSA) infringed the fundamental rights of the citizens of the country even as the PIL claimed the State Legislature does not have any power to make laws prohibiting or restricting the entry and exit of Indian citizens under the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.
It was alleged in the petition that the state government, in the guise of safety of residents or in the name of COVID-19, was indirectly trying to implement ILP, which is the exclusive jurisdiction of the President of India by way of issuance of order under Clause 2 of Article 372 of the Constitution of India or of the central government.
The PIL argued that a constitutional authority cannot do indirectly what it is not permitted to do directly and if it does, that will be a fraud on the Constitution and such similar fraud has been committed by the state while trying to implement the ILP in the guise of residents’ safety by bringing in the MRSSA.
