North Shillong MLA Adelbert Nongrum has strongly criticised Union Home Minister Amit Shah for failing to say anything on the implementation of the Inner Line Permit (ILP) in Meghalaya during the latter’s recent visit to the state.
“Shah totally ignored the aspirations of the people of the state, such as on ILP, the inclusion of the Khasi language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, the appointment of a home-grown local qualified professor from NEHU (North-Eastern Hill University) as Vice-Chancellor during his second visit to the state recently and inaugurated the Inter-State Bus Terminus (ISBT) at Mawïong, which shows his only interest is to encourage the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA),” Nongrum told Highland Post.
He said that the obstinate attitude of the central government, as demonstrated by Shah towards the state on ILP is a direct insult to all the 60 MLAs who had passed a resolution in the state Assembly on the matter in 2019.
“If the people from Delhi don’t want to talk about issues concerning the welfare of the state when they come here, then we need to go to Delhi to speak up on these issues and if they ignore us there, we need to protest in front of Parliament. This is the only way to send a strong message to the Centre. If the 60 MLAs don’t take such drastic steps it only means that they have made the resolution just to cool the various agitations and misled the people on the issues,” he said.
He also maintained that Meghalaya cannot compromise with the problem of influx for the sake of being a transit state for the rest of the North East.
“It makes ILP more obligatory if they say that Meghalaya is a transit state, just like we need to produce all the details and information when we enter the main Secretariat,” he added.
Nongrum also lambasted the BJP MLA and cabinet minister Sanbor Shullai for claiming that Meghalaya could get the ILP in five minutes if the BJP is voted to power at the next state elections, which are due in 2023.
Stating that Shullai cannot make such a mindless statement and take the people for a ride, Nongrum said, “ILP is a central government subject and what if BJP is no longer elected to power at the Centre in future? Shullai’s statement is just to brainwash the people of the state and to make the people in Delhi merrier.”
