SHILLONG, AUG 11: The Hynniewtrep Youth Council (HYC) on Tuesday threatened to announce agitations against the government’s failure to revoke its alleged “anti-custom” ordinance at a public meeting to be held on August 14.
Ahead of the meeting, HYC leaders have also kick-started distributing over 50, 000 anti-ordinance pamphlets from the state’s secretariat and district council, which will then be followed to different districts of Khasi-Jaintia hills region.
“We will soon announce intensive agitations to force the government to revoke the ordinance during our the public meeting at Motphran parking lot on August 14,” HYC general secretary Robertjune Kharjahrin told newsmen at a press conference on Tuesday.
The decision was taken after gauging the mind of the state government which is not willing to withdraw the ordinance during a meeting with the deputy chief minister in-charge law Rowel Lyngdoh and HYC recently.
During the meeting, the HYC had also served a one-week deadline (which will end on Friday) on the issue even as Lyngdoh made it clear that it is impossible to withdraw the ordinance, until and unless it is decided in the assembly.
“It is in view of this that we have decided to call for the public meeting and also distribute the pamphlets to make people aware of the negative impact if the ordinance is allowed to become an act,” Kharjahrin said while releasing the anti-ordinance pamphlets at the Shillong Press Club.
Highlighting the points in the pamphlet which explained in what way the ordinance is a disadvantage to the indigenous community, the HYC leader said, “For the first time we found that the government is attempting to encroach and interfere with the powers of the district council.”
Stating that the village administration is the subject of the district council since its inception in 1952, he said, “Through this ordinance, the government is not only trying to interferes with the district council but also trying to take away its rights provided under Sixth Schedule of the Constitution,” adding “This also shows that the government is attempting to interfere with the relationship of the indigenous community with India.”
Terming the ordinance as ‘anti-custom’ and venomous that seeks to poison the indigenous community, Kharjahrin said, “The ordinance which was introduced by the government under the Para 12 A of the Sixth Schedule, will only kills the Acts of the different traditional institutions such as the Himas and Dolloiship.”
He further pointed out while section 2 clause b of the Ordinance sidelines the authority of the district council and traditional institutions while electing a headman by encouraging the growth of self-style headmen in the villages.
“It only says headmen can be elected based on the recognition from the people which allows non-indigenous people to be elected as headman to the traditional village systems,” he alleged.
Stating that section 2 (k) further empowers the state government to notify any places as village, he said, “We fear that this will only allow the government to notify Panchayati Raj system inside the tribal villages.”
Referring to section 3 of the Ordinance, he said, it empowers the headmen to issue NOC or residential certificates without specifying who are the residents entitled for such certificates adding and if headmen fails to issue within five days he will be summon by the DC or SDO.
“Therefore, based on these points we have strongly opposed the ordinance and demands for immediate withdrawal in the interest of the indigenous community,” Kharjahrin said.
When asked, the general secretary said that the pamphlets will be distributed to all the people in the six districts of the Khasi and Jaintia hills region adding that they proposed to complete distributing of the 50, 000 copies within two weeks.- By Our Reporter
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