By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, May 12: Toughening its stand, the Voice of the People Party (VPP) on Friday served a 48-hour ultimatum to the state government to issue a notification putting on hold all ongoing recruitment processes till the issues of roster system and Meghalaya State Reservation Policy are deliberated upon threadbare and resolved.
The VPP held a meeting at the parking lot near Additional Secretariat and later, a delegation of the party submitted a letter to Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma, in absentia, through Deputy Chief Minister Sniawbhalang Dhar and also held a brief discussion with him on the matter. Chief Secretary DP Wahlang was also present when the letter was submitted.
The CM is away in New Delhi on an official trip. He is accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong.
The VPP lamented that despite its plea to Sangma through a letter for a special session of the Assembly so that the legislators can deliberate and resolve the issues, the Chief Minister’s Office did not respond.
Addressing the meeting, VPP president Ardent M Basaiawmoit said as the party wants the government to review the reservation policy, the recruitment processes should be kept on hold.
He said the absence of the chief minister and the deputy chief minister (Tynsong) was an insult to the VPP.
“We did not know that they were this scared of the VPP,” Basaiawmoit said.
He also said the VPP is not against the Garos. He said the party wants that reservation is proportionate to population structure.
“We will not take away the rights and we are not asking the government to do away with the reservation policy,” Basaiawmoit said.
Asked if it is fair to ask the government to put on hold the recruitment processes when the job-seekers are demanding that the vacant posts should be filled in early, Basaiawmoit said the creation of more jobs is also the VPP’s concern.
“We have three main tribes and government is following the reservation policy that it framed. However, there is a problem since the policy hasn’t been framed according to population structure. So, we feel if government is implementing the roster system in the present form and recruiting and filling posts, it will create a lot of problems to the unemployed youth of the state,” Basaiawmoit argued.
Security was beefed up at the venue of the meeting.
