GUWAHATI: Meghalaya chief minister, Conrad K Sangma minced little words to express concerns and apprehensions of the Northeastern states in the wake of the NRC fallout and the row over Citizenship Amendment Bill in the region.
Addressing the 4th Conclave of North East Democratic Alliance attended by Union home minister Amit Shah here on Monday, Sangma said the Centre needed to clarify in no uncertain terms whether the local laws and Acts of the northeastern states would “apply or not” if the Citizenship Amendment Bill comes into effect.
The
BJP-led government had earlier hinted at bringing CAB into force in the
country to give shelter to persecuted religious minorities of the
neighbouring countries.
“Issues
related to NRC and CAB has affected Northeast. So the Northeast wants
to know whether the laws of the region will be applicable or bypassed by
the central government if CAB (which organisations in the region are
against and have held protests in the past several months). We are
worried in this regard as here we have the Sixth Schedule, ILP and the
Residents Safety Act in my state, Meghalaya,” Sangma said.
Referring
to the NRC in Assam, the chief minister openly expressed his
apprehension and fear that a good chunk of the over 19lakh discarded
from the citizens list might sneak into Meghalaya from the neighbouring
state.
Sangma urged the
home minister not to overlook Northeast’s interests while taking
decisions even as he thanked the present dispensation for the respect
given to Northeast leaders today in stark contrast with the past, and
mutual coopereration through tge NEDA “parivaar”
He
further cited an instance referring to the camaraderie of leaders and
parties under NEDA, as to how he as the chief minister consults his
partners in the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance before taking any decision
in the state. “All partners in a coalition has to be respected.
Likewise, all parties under NEDA have to be respected across the
country,” Sangma said.
The
chief minister also suggested that the NEDA meetings should be held
more than once a year as there are many issues such as border,
coordination, development, trade, et al, that need constant discussion
and deliberation.
“Leaders
and parties of the Northeast should be invited by the Centre for
discussions to find solutions to the long pending border problem among
other issues plaguing the region.,” he said.
Sangma
further said there should not be any room for complacency now that the
region is ruled by chief ministers from non-Congress parties.
“We
must make use of the NEDA platform to overcome all challenges and not
only make all the Northeast states developed but to go beyond and make
the region a prosperous part of the country. ”
