Shillong, Mar 16: The state cabinet today decided to extend the term of the present Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) for another six months, starting from April 18.
District Council Affairs Minister and Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong told reporters that, with the resignation of Chief Executive Member (CEM) Albinush R Marak and the election of Naguapara MDC Dhormonath Ch Sangma as his replacement, there is a new Executive Committee in the council.
All the blame for the failure of the GHADC to deal effectively with the issue of non-tribal participation in the council has seemingly been put on Albinush.
Although a member of the National People’s Party (NPP), which rules both the GHADC and the state government, Albinush had lost favour with the party top brass even before the matter at hand had exploded in deadly and destructive violence last week in Garo Hills.
Albinush had not been given a ticket for the GHADC elections (originally scheduled for April 10 but now pushed back) by his own party and NPP MDCs joined hands with the opposition to unseat him as CEM. With a huge majority of members against him, Albinush resigned today before he faced the ignominy of a trust vote that he was surely going to lose.
Tynsong said that it is now left to the “wisdom” of the new EC to take a call on the issue of non-tribal participation in the GHADC. As per current rules, non-tribals are allowed to stand and vote in GHADC elections. However, Garo pressure groups, politicians and civil society organisations have been calling for a change to the status quo. The Albinush-led GHADC had tried, in vain, to make it mandatory for candidates to produce a Scheduled Tribe certificate when filing their nominations; however, the High Court ruled that the GHADC had not followed prescribed procedures when making the new rule. The attempt by two non-tribal politicians to file their nominations last Monday sparked the violence in Garo Hills.
Tynsong added that the new EC, the CEM and the government will take the responsibility of calling all stakeholders for a discussion on the pressing issue.
The Deputy CM said that Albinush had unilaterally decided to invoke the new ST certificate rule and did not consult his colleagues in the EC first. “I am not saying that it is wrong, in fact it may be right, but it was not as per the prescribed norm. Why should he alone sign the notification?” Tynsong said, adding that Albinush had failed in understanding the issue and ultimately all the MDCs went against him.
With the new CEM and EC the people will have the opportunity to flag their concerns and within the six months accommodate and make the necessary amendment to exclude non-tribals, Tynsong added.
