SHILLONG, Feb 14: As the uncertainty surrounding the demand for implementation of Inner Line Permit (ILP) in the state continues, the United Democratic Party (UDP) said it is ready to accept any mechanism which is stronger, be it ILP or Meghalaya Residents Safety and Security Act (MRSSA).
“We will accept whichever is stronger and a better mechanism,” UDP general secretary Jemino Mawthoh told The Shillong Times.
The statement from the UDP, which is a constituent of the state’s ruling coalition, comes at a time the Centre is seemingly focusing more on the implementation of MRSSA than the ILP.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah recently told Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma in New Delhi that he would visit Shillong in March and hold discussions on MRSSA besides “infiltration”.
Governor Satya Pal Malik had also stated earlier that ILP would have negative ramifications. He had suggested that the state government should concentrate on MRSSA.
The UDP general secretary said, “The state Assembly has already passed a resolution for the implementation of ILP. So, we want the Centre to spell out the reasons behind its delay.”
“We will welcome if the Centre comes up with a much stronger mechanism and address the common concerns of the state’s indigenous people,” he said.
Mawthoh asked the state government to come clean on what transpired at the meeting of the state Cabinet with Shah and his stand on ILP.
The pro-ILP groups, including the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU), are in no mood to settle for only MRSSA.
“MRSSA is a state subject and it does not require examination or scrutiny of the Government of India. The Governor has the authority to approve it. We are surprised that it went out of the Governor’s hands,” KSU president Lambokstar Marngar said.
Stating that ILP is a Central law and stronger than MRSSA, he said, “We need ILP and the Central government should respect our resolution by granting ILP to the state.”
If ILP is implemented, MRSSA will supplement it and the mechanism to check influx will be stronger, he added.