SHILLONG: Thma U Rangli Juki (TUR) and Civil Society Women’s Organisation have stressed the need of inclusion of Village Councils and other unrepresented tribes in the amendment of the Sixth Schedule.
In a statement, Angela Rangad of TUR and Agnes Kharshiing of CSWO said that they made additional submissions to the Parliamentary Standing Committee of Home Affairs, headed by Anand Sharma, examining the proposed 125th Constitution Amendment Bill 2019 which seeks to amend the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution of India.
The additional submissions were following the oral and written submissions made to the standing committee during its meeting in Shillong on January 18.
Both Civil Society Women’s Organisation and Thma U Rangli Juki have taken objection to the ‘biased’ actions of state government and district councils of the state in not consulting various stakeholders from the state, including indigenous minority tribes and women.
“Consultation was made with just men and that too of the majority tribes of Meghalaya”, they said.
According to the pressure groups, no exemption should be given on the establishment of Village Councils or any other traditional body identifying the same like Dorbar Shnong regarding elections and voting and allowing women to take part in deliberations and standing for elections at the village level as well as reservation of one third seats in the Village Councils or any other traditional body identifying the same like Dorbar Shnong.
“There should be reservation of one third seats for women in the autonomous territorial councils and not merely providing for additional nominated seats reserved for women as per the current proposed amendment”, they said.
The pressure groups said suffrage to autonomous territorial councils and village councils should be based on tribal adult suffrage.
Moreover, unrepresented tribes should get representation through nomination by the governor and there should be mandatory social audit to be undertaken by Village Councils/Dorbar Shnong, they said.
The pressure group said the district council courts and village courts should be exempted from dealing with the cases related to crimes against women.
