Shillong, Aug 17: The East Jaintia Hills unit of the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) conducted a drive yesterday to catch supposed illegal migrants entering the state from Assam’s Barak Valley along National Highway 6.
During the drive, KSU members stopped several individuals without labour licences or work permits and sent them back to Assam. This alone, however, does not mean that the individuals were illegal migrants, especially as they may have been intending on applying for a labour licence or work permit upon reaching Meghalaya.
The KSU action was ostensibly prompted by concerns that illegal settlers in Assam, under pressure from an eviction drive conducted by that state, may seek to relocate to Meghalaya. Yet, this appears prima facie to be another case of pressure groups taking the law into their own hands.
