In a democracy, there are many contestations and demands from different interest groups. As the name suggests, each group seeks to protect its own interests. The Inner Line Permit (ILP) is seen by some pressure groups in Meghalaya as the only mechanism to contain influx in the state. Influx is perceived as dangerous because it could upset the fragile demographic balance of the tribals of Meghalaya. However, the other aspect is that while Meghalaya is home to the tribes it also has within its fold permanent non-tribal residents who have made this land their home much before Meghalaya was carved out Assam. So what is the mechanism to be adopted for identifying those non-tribals domiciled here whenever they travel out and return home? Should they be subjected to the same checks at the respective check gates? What we witness today is that those manning the check gates take a cursory look inside the vehicles carrying passengers and allow those with tribal looks to pass through. But a non-tribal, irrespective of him/her being a permanent resident of Meghalaya has to produce some form of document to prove his/her identity. This is not only violative of the Indian Constitution which guarantees freedom of movement of all Indian citizens within the country but also reduces the status of genuine non-tribal residents of Meghalaya to that of temporary visitors. Does a permanent resident of a state not have rights and privileges under the Indian Constitution?
Those who clamour for the ILP have obviously not thought through the process and the possibility that someone who feels aggrieved by the ILP might approach a court of law since his rights are violated. The non-tribals of Meghalaya have acceded to several demands for withdrawing from the political processes in the state. As far as the KHADC is concerned the non-tribals gave up their right to fight elections to the Council just to keep the peace. Later they were also not allowed to vote for the Council elections. Now their number in the Assembly is reduced to nil. So who actually represents their interests? Clearly the non-tribal is a non-citizen in Meghalaya.
