By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, July 14: Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma will lead his entire Cabinet to New Delhi to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for the implementation of the inner-line permit (ILP) system in Meghalaya and the inclusion of Khasi and Garo languages in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.
The state Assembly had passed resolutions on these two issues.
Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong had broken the news about the New Delhi trip to members of the Hynniewtrep Youth Council (HYC) who met him at the secretariat after a pro-ILP and anti-railway demonstration.
HYC general secretary, Roy Kupar Synrem told reporters that they protested the chief minister’s statement that the government would welcome the railways in the Jaintia Hills region.
Asserting the HYC’s stand against the railways in the absence of any law to protect the indigenous people, Synrem said his team asked Tynsong about the ILP, constitutional recognition for Garo and Khasi languages, and the amendment to the Meghalaya Residents’ Safety and Security Act (MRSSA).
He said the deputy chief minister clarified that the government has no intention to bring the railways to the Khasi and Jaintia Hills.
“In the cases of ILP, MRSSA, and Khasi and Garo languages, we were told the entire Cabinet would travel to New Delhi during the monsoon session of Parliament to meet the Prime Minister, union home minister, and other ministers to impress upon them the need to address the long-pending demands of the state,” Synrem said.
He criticised the Centre for granting ILP to Manipur but delaying it for Meghalaya.
“We are not against development. We want protection for the indigenous communities of the state,” he said.