SHILLONG, Sep 27: The opposition Trinamool Congress (TMC) has termed the first phase of Meghalaya’s border agreement with Assam as the Instrument of Accession-II and sniffed a predetermined motive behind the second phase of talks “without any positivity”.
The opposition chief whip, George B Lyngdoh said: “We lost the land under the administrative control of the Khasi states with the signing of the Instrument of Accession in 1947-48 that made all the Himas accede to India.”
The Himas were similarly not consulted, and their land was given to Assam without their consent during the first phase of the border agreement, he added.
Regarding phase two of the boundary talks and the announcement of the regional committees in the state, Lyngdoh said, “The chief minister said on the floor of the Assembly that the agreement was irreversible, and it is not necessary for the government to accept any views given by the stakeholders.”
He said the first phase demonstrated that the government has no intention to listen to the stakeholders. “We will not be surprised if the government takes a similar stand in the second phase,” he added.
Lyngdoh referred to animated activities on the Assam side of the interstate boundary. “Assam has already shown its intent by sending its MLAs to areas such as Langpih where they said not even an inch of land will be given to Meghalaya. The district council of Assam has made similar observations regarding Block 1 and Block 2, which is totally against the interest of Meghalaya,” Lyngdoh said.
He wondered if the aggressive attitude and statements made in Assam would impact the second round of talks to resolve the boundary dispute.
He lamented the lack of coordination among the stakeholders in Meghalaya, unlike their Assam counterparts.
