SHILLONG, April 5: Home Minister Lahkmen Rymbui on Tuesday endorsed Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma’s statement on the issue of re-examining the areas where the recent border agreement has left many angry and unhappy.
Sangma had last week virtually ruled out any re-examination of Meghalaya’s agreement with Assam for resolving the 50-year-old boundary dispute in six of the 12 contested areas, asserting that it was signed based on a set of unchangeable principles agreed upon by the two neighbouring states.
“It is not befitting for me to reply beyond what the chief minister has already stated,” Rymbui said when pointed out that Sangma had hinted at not revisiting the areas of resentment.
He said the agreement was not arrived at within the four walls of the Secretariat but after a series of consultations by the regional committees with the border residents.
“Questions will always be raised in politics, whether you work or not. This government has tried its best to sort out this long-delayed issue. Let’s see how it turns out,” Rymbui said.
Asked if there is a threat to his political career given the fact that elections are near and many border residents are unhappy with the memorandum of understanding, he said: “We will have to see what kinds of threats we will be facing but the government takes decisions for a larger interest.”
On setting up police outposts along the boundary with Assam, he said the process is on. “We will work towards protecting the interest of the people living in the border areas,” he added.
The United Democratic Party, the party which Rymbui represents, had on Sunday asked the state government to revisit those areas where the recent border agreement caused anger among the residents.
“We are happy with most things that have happened but we are not happy with certain things that have happened,” UDP general secretary Jemino Mawthoh had said while reacting to the border pact.