The president of the Hill State People Democratic Party (HSPDP), KP Pangniang, today said that some media misinterpreted his statement on the 12 areas of difference between Meghalaya and Assam.
“I want to clarify that I did not say that the 12 areas of differences are not under the jurisdiction of Meghalaya. I meant to say that, as per the official maps used in the state, all the 12 areas of differences are not included,” he said.
“The HSPDP has always demanded the demarcation and settlement of the boundary dispute with Assam, so it was a false and incomplete statement made by some media that the president of HSPDP said that the 12 areas of differences do not fall under Meghalaya,” he added.
Recalling that in 2010 the HSPDP publicly tore an official map as a mark of protest for not including the 12 areas of difference, Pangniang said, “When I was MLA in 2016 I raised the boundary issue in the Assembly, demanding the state government include the 12 areas of difference in the official map of Meghalaya and to do away with the official maps used in governmental offices where the areas were not included and, instead, retain the map of 1976 where all the areas of differences were included.”
With regards to the dismay and anger expressed by the people of Malang Salbari falling under Assam, he said that, as a member of the West Khasi Hills regional committee, he saw that all the concerned stakeholders were together on the spot and given a chance to express themselves freely before the committee submitted its findings to the government.
“We have tried our level best and taken everyone on board and now the matter is entirely on the level of the Chief Ministers of the two states,” he added.
Meanwhile, the party launched its website, hspdp.in, today. Pangniang said that the website will contain all the required information about the party, including its constitution and the party’s 50-year journey.
“We welcome any public suggestion through the website and the party will also furnish various information through the website,” he said.
Meanwhile, given the ongoing school examinations, the HSPDP youth wing essay competition on the topic ‘Do we need a separate Khasi-Jaiñtia state has been extended until May 20.
