SHILLONG, Jan 27: The Advisory Committee on Law and Traditional Affairs of the KHADC will take two months’ time to submit its report on the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (Khasi Social Custom of Clan Administration) Bill, 2020, to the Executive Committee (EC).
Talking to reporters after a meeting on Friday, Bindo Mathew Lanong, who is the chairman of the panel, informed that intricate deliberations were held on various provisions laid down in the Bill in the past one year.
“We will need two more sittings to fine-tune the Bill as per the observations made by the Governor,” Lanong said.
It may be mentioned that the Bill was passed during the Winter Session of the KHADC in 2018. However, when it was sent to the Governor for assent, it was returned with few observations.
It was following this, the EC constituted the advisory committee to fine-tune the Bill and incorporate necessary observations made by the Governor.
It may be mentioned that the Bill seeks to penalise non-tribals using Khasi surnames and to codify and regulate the system of Kur (clan) of the Khasi-Jaintia tribe. It also provides for proper administration of clans (Kur) in order to conserve and grow the traditional matrilineal system of Khasi society for the protection of their interest and, at the same time, to prevent claims of Khasi status by unscrupulous persons purely for benefits, concessions or privileges conferred on the Khasis as members of the Scheduled Tribes of India.
According to Lanong, Friday’s meeting was also attended by members of four groups including representatives from the Seng Khasi Seng Kmie, HYC Sohiong Circle, Kharshiing clan, Suting clan and Syngkhong Rympei Thymmai (SRT) from Laban. “We got an opportunity to deliberate with the four groups since they have submitted their suggestions on the proposed Bill,” Lanong said.
Informing that the committee has almost reached the final stage to examine the proposed Bill, he said that once submitted by the panel, the report will be scrutinised by the EC.
According to him, the suggestions and views submitted by various groups have allowed committee to further fine-tune the proposed Bill.
“We had accepted some of the suggestions made by the various groups. But there are also few which we did not incorporate in the Bill,” he said.
Replying to a query, he said that the four groups have come forward to submit their views and suggestions after the committee had sought views from various groups and clans.