Editor,
At long last, the Block I will be for Labang Nongphyllut thanks to the 1957 superseding letter as would be read. Going through a local daily dated 3rd July 2023, I was very delighted to learn of the latest developments on Block 1. In 1983, I was doing field work as the RDO of Apex Bank when I came to know of the people of both states of Assam and Meghalaya having a joint border survey at Khanduli. One person happened to be my friend from Jowai. I enquired of him about the settlement whereby he told me the story. The Assam people instead of discussing the boundary stones, they travelled from settled boundary crossed Rtiang Sanphaw very much in Meghalaya to erect new stones right at the bridge to Khanduli market place. The Meghalaya side objected and finally the two parties would report to the respective Chief Secretary. I was told that the people of Meghalaya reported to their Chief Secretary who was ready to accept what had happened.
The border settlement seemed not of interest to the two governments. Being heavily absorbed with college duty, I soon lost interest. Yes, I kept on contacting my friend in Shillong after that sad incident of five people of Mukroh shot dead by the Assam police right on their own territory. He was kind enough to send me the map by R L Singh of the National Geographic Society of India, Varanasi 1971.
The black ink shaded area is the Block 1 rightfully of the Pnars called the Labang Nongphyllut. But when India got its independence in 1947 and the Constitution of Dr. Ambedkar promulgated with good news of Para X Article 244 with Para XII Article 275, the protectors of the 5th and the 6th schedules and tribal areas too with fiscal assistance as well. But less than 15 months after the promulgation of the Constitution, the then governor of Assam did the most unprecedented in history. He violated the Constitution by creating the United Mikir and North Cachar Hills District under the Assam Notification Act TAD/GA/83/ 50 dated the 5th April 1951.
If the map be kindly consulted, the governor had brought the Mikirs from around 1000 km away from the Kopili Jamuna border which now form the Nowgong and Sibsagar Districts. The Mikirs brought from the above area are then mechanically tagged with Jaintias who had lost a big abode when the East India Company annexed the major portion of Jaintia Kingdom in 1835.
The then MLA of the Jaintia Hills of first independent India, Larsing Khyriem in the winter session of Assembly did put a Note of Dissent against the above Notification, soon followed by the Minister of Assam Bishnu Ram Medhi. The quality of public representatives of the bygone era was top class and the Dissent Note against the governor’s notification was the talk of those days unlike at the present in our country.
With the people of Labang Nongphyllut and Pangam Raliang who by the above Notification had turned strangers on their ancestors’ land fighting tooth and nail against the governor’s notification, the Assam government, to cosmetically please the aggrieved people ordered the CEM of Mikir Hills District to arrange enquiry unto the border issue. But the CEM ordered not to do any enquiry until Mikir Hills boundary is settled first. For newcomers let it be known that at the October Assembly of 1950, one Mikir Leader Mr Teron vehemently objected to the Notification as the Mikirs were denied of the north-eastern portion of Lumding (the map could help readers to understand) which was predominantly populated by the Mikirs. Thus, Larsing Khyriem was very right when he charged the Assam government with a policy of not only divide and rule but policy of bringing tribes from far away territories to fight against tribes.
But let us thank the UK & J Hills who had managed to have the retransfer of land of Mikirs to Jowai Sub-Division when Mr R T Rymbai was the Under Secretary to the Government of Assam I/C Tribal Affairs Department. But with the Assam government always siding with the Mikirs, the retransferment was just a formality.
The Khasi local had brought great good news as by now it was known that there was a Superseding Letter as published in the Assam Gazette dated 13th March 1957 superseding the Assam Notification TAD/GA/83/50 of 5th April 1951. The Superseding letter is RSR/296/51/133.
The above discovery of the superseding letter has become a saviour to the people of Labang Nongphyllut who for 72 long years have been ill treated, tortured in all possible inhumane ways, with their representatives blinded to all circumstances. The tortures are no different from what is daily witnessed on social media right now. The farmers are being denied to go to fields, the check gates arbitrarily put in Meghalaya, the youths are being arrested with no reason, LP school in Psiar frequently harassed (Psiar is geographically defended by Molber in Mookaiaw Constituency and Mo means Stone and Lber pertains to March season elephant grass), no PHC, no electricity. Children collecting pine tree caterpillars are stopped and robbed of whatever is collected.
Let all readers realise that the Mikirs were original settlers of the bank of the Brahmaputra. They once inhabited the Kaziranga as well. And more devastating is that the Mikirs and Pnars have diverse differences in culture, dialect with the Pnars of matrilineal versus the Mikirs who are patrilineal. And the Pnars have Dollois to rule over them.
There is a sense of joy and relief but at the same time a sense of great regret for having suffered unnecessarily for 72 long years just because there were no documents. Thus Y V Chandrachud, the Chief Justice of India who came in the 70s to preside over border dispute, who is also the father of the present Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, was absolutely right then when he said, “Border settlement with only settlement and no document is but futile”.
And with our CM Conrad Sangma having successfully managed Maikhuli and Pillingkata though still subjected to the Supreme Court verdict, this Block 1 on account of the lately found superseding latter will be a sure victory for the people of Labang Nongphyllut. Even so, it’s better late than never.
W Passah
Ex HOD Electronics
St. Edmund’s College
Shillong
