PDF says no ILP, no railway in Meghalaya

The stand of the party on the issue was made clear after the triennial conference of the PDF central youth front held at the Khasi National Dorbar Hall, Mawkhar.

“On September 18, last year, we met the chief minister Conrad K Sangma requesting the government not to go ahead with the introduction of the railway line in the region,” PDF president and cabinet minister Banteidor Lyngdoh told reporters after the meeting.

This came as a reaction to the recent statement of the chief minister that the state government would continue to consult with the stakeholders for introduction of goods trains up to Byrnihat in Ri Bhoi district after the KHADC had rejected the request for its consent.

Adding further, party leader and cabinet minister Hamletson Dohling said that the party is not ready to welcome neither the goods trains nor the passenger trains till such time proper mechanisms are put in place to check influx into the state.

“As of now, ILP is still pending with the Government of India. So until and unless we have strong mechanisms to protect the indigenous people, we will not allow the introduction of either goods or passenger trains,” Dohling.

The former KSU leader-turned-politician further slammed the Government of India for its alleged delay to grant ILP to Meghalaya.

“Due to the stubbornness of the Government of India, we do not know whether ILP will be granted to Meghalaya. It is high time that the Government of India says something about ILP, whether it will grant or reject (the demand),” he said.

In 2019, the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly had unanimously passed a resolution urging the Centre to implement ILP in the state. The Union Home Minister Amit Shah had also met the state government and different stakeholders during his visits to the state but nothing positive came out from such meetings.

If the BJP is trying to politicize the ILP issue in view of the upcoming 2023 Assembly polls in the state, Dohling however said, “Whether BJP is politicizing the ILP issue or not but the people of the state want ILP. Let the BJP politicize the issue if the ILP is granted, we are happy.”

Regarding the boundary issue, Dohling said the party expects that six of the twelve areas of difference will soon be resolved.

“Hopefully, the Government of India and the Home Ministry will (approve) the reports submitted by the Government of Meghalaya and Government of Assam,” he said.

When asked, Dohling said that the government is not trying to hide anything and assured that the reports submitted to the Centre will be made public at an appropriate time.

By Our Reporter