By Dr Omarlin Kyndiah & Prof PM Passah
Of all the three tribes and the three regions that now comprise the present State of Meghalaya, the Jaintias and their homeland—the Jaintia Hills have been the most neglected since the Independence of India. A large chunk of the Jaintia Hills, the already small remnant of the Jaintias’ once-larger kingdom was unconstitutionally detached, transferred, and mechanically tagged with the non-contiguous and truncated Mikir Hills (now Karbi Anglong) in April 1951, very soon after the promulgation of the Constitution of Independent India on 26 January 1950.
Hence, of all the three regions of Meghalaya, the Jaintia Hills constitute an exceptional case in the history of the present boundary dispute with Assam. It may well be the first and only instance where a State violated the provisions of the Constitution of India soon after its promulgation, particularly in respect of Part X (Article 244) and Part XII (Article 275). These two Parts of the Constitution, along with the Fifth and Sixth Schedules, adequately provide for the protection of, and fiscal assistance to, Scheduled and Tribal Areas in the country. Yet, the then Government of Assam politically meddled with the tribal area set apart for the Jaintias, in violation of constitutional provisions and against the ethno-geography and geo-polity of the hill tribes of the North-Eastern region, hardly fifteen months after the Constitution came into force.
The British annexed the Jaintia Kingdom in 1835 and confined the Jaintias to their small hilly country as their primitive and ancestral home. This arrangement was duly ratified by the Constituent Assembly under the Constitution of Independent India, approved and signed on 26 November 1949 and promulgated on 26 January 1950. However, the then Government of Assam, against the will of the people, detached a large portion of the Jaintia Hills comprising two Dalloiships (Nongphyllut and Ri Bhoi), one Sirdarship (Langsoh-Mynriang), a large part of Raliang Dalloiship known as Pangam Raliang, and parts of the Dalloiships of Shilliang Myntang, Nangjngi, and Nartiang. Altogether, these areas constituted nearly half of the Jaintia Hills. As stated earlier, the detached area was forcibly transferred and mechanically tagged with the non-contiguous and truncated Mikir Hills for the creation of the then United Mikir and North Cachar Hills District on 13 April 1951.
Many Jaintias from the forcibly transferred area were arrested and taken to Nowgong Jail and other jails elsewhere for their peaceful opposition to the high-handed actions of the Assam Government. Two of the arrested- Trod Thaiang and Pin Thaiang Sariang were beaten to death in Nowgong Jail, while three others went missing, and their whereabouts remain unknown even today (M.M. Thaiang, The History of the People of Labang Nongphyllut & Pangam Raliang, 2001). Those who went missing may well have been killed and their bodies disposed of at will by the Assam authorities. The martyrdom of these individuals will never be reconciled until the restoration of the pre-1951 map of the Jaintia Hills is achieved through the re-transfer of the detached areas. The souls of the martyrs are still heard crying for the re-transfer of Blocks I and II to the Jaintia Hills.
Since 1951, and for nearly seventy five years, there have been a series of peaceful movements and agitations by various Jaintia NGOs demanding the re-transfer of Blocks I and II to the Jaintia Hills, earlier officially known as the Jowai Sub-Division- one of the oldest subdivisions of the former composite State of Assam. The Jaintia people will never accept the government report vide letter No. POL.78/2010/209 dated 8 August 2011 regarding the area proposed to be transferred to Meghalaya in these two Blocks, nor the separate consideration of the villages of Khanduli and Psiar, which are integral parts of the two Blocks. For the area actually transferred, the District Census Handbook of the United Khasi and Jaintia District, 1961, remains dependable. It must be emphasised that the original demand of the Jaintias since 1951 has consistently been the re-transfer of these two Blocks as per the pre-1951 map of the Jaintia Hills.
The Jaintias accept the five principles agreed upon by the States of Assam and Meghalaya—(i) historical facts, (ii) geographical contiguity, (iii) administrative convenience, (iv) ethnicity, and (v) people’s will- in deciding boundary issues between the two States.
Geographically, the Jaintia Hills and the Mikir Hills are in no way contiguous. A map of the “Meghalaya and Mikir Region” taken from R.L. Singh, India: A Regional Geography (National Geographical Society of India, Varanasi, January 1971, pp. 675–695), clearly shows that the Jaintia Hills and the Mikir Hills lie apart, with the North Cachar Hills and the Assam plains namely the Kapili and Jamuna valleys lying in between. Historically, linguistically, and culturally, the two tribes are poles apart. The Mikirs or Karbis are closer to the Assamese and belong to the Tibeto-Burman group or Bodo stock, as evidenced by historical records.
In 1957, it was agreed that Block I would be re-transferred to the Jaintia Hills pending a decision on Block II. However, the Assam Government, acting through the Karbi Anglong District Council, effectively foiled this decision, and the dispute has remained unresolved ever since (M.M. Thaiang). The only viable solution to this baffling problem is the restoration of the pre-1951 boundaries of the Jaintia Hills- the ancestral home of the Jaintias, while what remains of the so-called West Mikir Hills (West Karbi Anglong) district may be retained by Assam.
In a conciliatory spirit, it is hoped that the Government of Assam will recognise this historical mistake and make due atonement by not resisting the restoration of the pre-1951 Jaintia map, which depicts the hilly country of the Jaintias since time immemorial and which was legalised under British administration and duly ratified by the Constitution of Free India, approved on 26 November 1949 and promulgated on 26 January 1950. This position, it is believed, would find affirmation even among fair-minded Assamese historians of the present day. To reiterate, no solution will ever mentally or emotionally satisfy the Jaintia people for all time to come other than the re-transfer of the entire area- Blocks I and II for the reunification of the pre-1951 Jaintia Hills, their ancient homeland. It is earnestly hoped that Assam will not treat this matter as one of prestige, but will act in the larger interest of peace and tranquility in the disputed area for all time to come.
A brief account of how the Commission for the creation of the then United Mikir and North Cachar Hills District was constituted is instructive. The Commission consisted of two Assamese leaders (one Minister as Chairman and one MLA), two Mikir leaders (both MLAs-one representing the Mikir Hills and another from outside the Mikir Hills), three senior officials who would naturally toe the pre-meditated line of the Assam Government (one appointed Secretary, another Additional Secretary, and the third as Member), and only one MLA representing the Jaintias. Thus, seven members stood against one, rendering the constitution of the Commission a mere formality.
The MLA representing the Jaintias submitted a Dissent Note, which fell on deaf ears. The MLA representing the Mikirs initially refused to sign the report, as the Mikirs were denied the adjacent plains areas which they predominantly occupied and continue to occupy. He signed the report the following day, leading to much speculation as to what transpired overnight. The deprivation of the Jaintias of a substantial part of their ancestral homeland was therefore pre-conceived and pre-meditated, possibly driven by a policy of divide and rule. The Assam Government itself questioned the Commission for inflating the Mikir population figures in Blocks I and II. Although the Commission admitted that these figures were not in accordance with the Census reports, the matter was politically hushed up (M.M. Thaiang).
Concluding Appeal to the Union Government
The forcible detachment of nearly half of the Jaintia Hills in April 1951, barely fifteen months after the Constitution came into force, constitutes a grave and unresolved constitutional wrong. It violated Articles 244 and 275, along with the Fifth and Sixth Schedules, which exist to protect the territorial, cultural, and institutional integrity of Tribal Areas. The burden of this violation has been borne continuously by the Jaintia people.
The historical record is clear. The pre-1951 boundaries of the Jaintia Hills were legally recognised and constitutionally ratified. The mechanical attachment of non-contiguous Jaintia territory to the Mikir Hills lacked geographical contiguity, ethnic affinity, historical justification, and popular consent. On all five principles accepted by Assam and Meghalaya- history, geography, administrative convenience, ethnicity, and people’s will, the Jaintia claim stands justified.
The persistence of this injustice has caused social distress, institutional erosion, and recurring conflict, undermining national interest. The Union Government, as custodian of tribal rights and inter-State equity, must intervene decisively. The only just and lasting solution is the restoration of the pre-1951 Jaintia Hills through the re-transfer of Blocks I and II, correcting a historical and constitutional wrong and restoring faith in constitutional governance.
