Shillong, Oct 13: Elections to the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) could happen in under six months, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said today.
The cabinet had, on October 7, extended the GHADC’s term by another six months – the second time this power had been invoked by the state. The polls were meant to happen in April but were put off following communal violence, which was ignited by the issue of non-tribal participation in the elections. Subsequently, the franchise was restricted to only tribals and candidacy reserved for tribals as well.
Sangma said the government intends to hold the elections before the end of its six-month term extension, stressing that delimitation must be completed before the polls can be conducted.
The CM said the delimitation exercise had been delayed as it required the separate electoral roll to be incorporated into the process. The exercise could not be completed without the approval of the Governor for the separate electoral roll, which was received around 10 days ago, he said.
Only after the approval was granted could the delimitation committee proceed with the final stage of the exercise.
He said the government was not attempting to delay the elections for any other reason and appealed to the people, particularly those in the Garo Hills region, to understand the need to complete the exercise. Sangma’s National People’s Party (NPP) is currently in power in the GHADC.
