Council initiates move for tribal-only electoral roll
From Our Correspondent
TURA, April 9: The Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) has launched a major administrative crackdown, terminating 29 “backdoor” appointees and initiating a formal process to strip non-tribals of voting rights in Council elections.
Garo Hills United Alliance (GHUA) spokesperson and MDC Cherak W Momin announced that the Executive Committee (EC) has terminated 29 employees—including LDAs, typists, and mondols—who were appointed by the previous administration without advertisements or interviews. Additionally, regularization orders for 39 casual employees, including forest guards and peons, have been revoked after a review revealed that senior staff were bypassed in the process.
Momin also issued a stern warning to “ghost” employees found drawing salaries while absconding from duty, ordering them to resume work immediately or resign.
Simultaneously, the Council has formed a four-member Delimitation Committee to oversee the preparation of a separate electoral roll. Chaired by former MPSC member Bebema T Sangma, the panel includes retired MCS officer Proley M Sangma, former ABDK vice president Brenethson R Marak, and GHADC Tourism Officer Briten A Sangma as secretary. The committee must submit its recommendations within six months.
The move follows a joint representation submitted on Tuesday by several Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), including the GSU, FKJGP, ADE, AYWO, AHAM, and FAF. The groups are demanding a “tribal-only” ballot to protect the Sixth Schedule and prevent the use of “proxy” candidates. They argue that the current system allows non-tribal men to use tribal women as proxies to gain political leverage.
Addressing land encroachment, the CSOs proposed a radical amendment to the Garo Hills District (Transfer of Land) Act. Citing illegal settlements in Wadagokgre and Boldamgre, the groups requested the penalty for illegal land transfers be increased from the current Rs 200 to Rs 10 lakh, with daily fines for violations raised from Rs 50 to Rs 5,000.
The groups further urged the GHADC to coordinate with state authorities to dismantle illegal settlements, claiming the existing task force is ill-equipped to handle the scale of encroachment along border areas.
