SHILLONG, July 11: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) state president Saleng Sangma on Monday spoke against the move to allow MLAs to speak in Khasi and Garo languages in the Assembly, saying it will create a rift among the tribal communities.
“I don’t think this is the right time to push for this. What we need is for the state government to pursue the inclusion of the Khasi and Garo languages in the Eight Schedule,” Sangma, who is also the party legislator from Gambegre, told reporters.
“It is the communication in English language which is binding us together,” he said, pointing out that the state did not have a united body like the Meghalaya Students’ Union to raise issues concerning the whole state.
He said pressure groups have been raising issues concerning a particular region.
He suggested that students from Khasi-Jaintia Hills should be encouraged to learn Garo while students from Garo Hills should be encouraged to learn Khasi and Jaintia language. “We need to be realistic in our approach. The fact is that we are yet to discuss with the CM the need to allow MLAs to speak in local languages,” Sangma said.
