SHILLONG, April 20: The Harijan Panchayat Committee (HPC) on Thursday rejected the relocation proposal (blueprint) of the government terming the same as “incomplete, unsuitable, unprepared, unfair and undemocratic”.
HPC general secretary, Gurjit Singh said they submitted an exhaustive six-page reply to the blueprint prepared by the government for relocating the residents of Harijan Colony, also known as Punjabi Lane. The reply was sent to the deputy secretary of the Meghalaya government and relevant officials in the departments concerned.
“There are serious lacunae, sweeping and undesirable conclusions in the approach and attitude of the High-Level Committee of the Meghalaya government,” the HPC letter reads.
“We are absolutely devastated that since the formation of the new government, ministers, MLAs, and certain groups have been making unnecessary remarks saying that the whole issue would be resolved within April. What magical trick do they have up their sleeve to resolve the issue within days? The matter is sub-judice and they are only paying lip service to respect the judiciary. We will not buckle under political duress,” it says.
“We have attended meetings of the government in good faith but the government is resorting to misinformation and disinformation through the media and at the meetings, the only attitude is to overawe us into submission to their proposal. The language of the political leadership is one of intimidation. They are putting our lives and properties at risk and making us vulnerable,” Singh said.
The HPC alleged that the “entire exercise is an ill-founded relocation theory, which actually compels the resident citizens of Punjabi Lane to forego their rights, title, and interest over whatever small land portion in the colony and to accept the prison cells-like accommodation being offered” in the proposed blueprint.
“Our original demands presented in the eight-point resolution still stand and we will not buckle under political duress merely because it is convenient for the government to do so and simply because due to the passage of time, the land has become a commercial goldmine,” Singh reiterated.
He said the HPC, despite all odds, has been spearheading a battle for the rights of the residents for the last three decades. It said in its detailed reply to the government that the disputed land belongs to the Syiem of Mylliem, and not to the government and any attempt by the government to buy it is violative of the Meghalaya Land Transfer Act. With reference to the incident of May 31, 2018, the HPC stated that the relocation theory surfaced suddenly for political and vested interests by “taking advantage of a stray case of discord”.
“We have all the official documentation necessary to live as citizens at our ancestral land in Punjabi Lane,” Singh claimed.
He said the letter pointed out gaping holes in the government’s blueprint – area too small and proposed houses being pigeonholes, official building guidelines violated, no roadmap of demolition of present structures, no public amenities and last but not least, no specification of title to the land and the houses.
“There are so many grey areas and gaps. The government must clarify all such concerns and only then can it be taken up for consideration by the Harijan Panchayat Committee, without prejudice to our right to reject the proposal,” Singh told media persons.
Deriding the government’s haste, the HPC general secretary said: “It has been held by the Supreme Court and other courts that the right to lead a dignified life is an inalienable right and provisions of housing cannot be such that it is uninhabitable. In the light of such judicial pronouncements, the residents are entitled to a better resolution.”
In an earnest appeal to the government and the people of Meghalaya, he said: “The state government must stop the witch hunt and allow us to build our houses and we can assure that the beauty of the area will be fully maintained and for this, the residents have the full support of the Sikh community.”
“The residents of Punjabi Lane want to live with honour and dignity in the land of their forefathers and it would be improper to treat them as aliens. The solution to this should be peaceful, amicable, mutual and permanent, without trampling on our fundamental rights,” he added.
