SHILLONG:
The Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) has asked the government not to “succumb” to the demands of the Harijan Panchayat Committee (HPC) in regards to the relocation of the residents of Them Iewmawlong.
“The KSU feels that their (HPC) demand is unacceptable. Government should not entertain them. It only goes to show that the government is subservient to them,” president of the union, Lambokstarwell Marngar said, on April 27.
The students body also warned of “mayhem” in the state if the government accepts all of HPC’s demands. “If that happens, all we can say is that all hell will break loose. The KSU will oppose the move along with the public and the local indigenous people of Meghalaya. There may be mayhem in the state.”
Stating that the issue is ticking like a “time bomb”, KSU general secretary Donald V Thabah said, “It has happened before and it will happen again. (Therefore), we want to reiterate that their demands should not be accepted.”
Comparing the attitude of the HPC to that of a “khun khlieng kpoh” (youngest daughter), who according to the Khasi societal tradition is the custodian of the ancestral property, Thabah said, “They are not locals, they are migrants and some of them have settled illegally. The government should evict the illegal settlers and the government servants, who are servings under various government departments, should be relocated.”
Criticising outsiders who had visited the state time and again to extend their support to the HPC, Marnger said, “If they are unhappy with the situation here, they should take the residents with them.”
On the HPC’s claim of ownership over the land at Them Iew Mawlong, the general secretary said, “The HPC does not received a syrnot (a certificate) from the Syiem of Hima Mylliem. This area falls under the Sixth Schedule. You need a syrnot from the chief to be recognised as a village council or a village dorbar. If they claim that then they should prove when did they buy the land and how are they able to buy land in a Schedule area.”
Earlier on April 26, the deputy chief minister Prestone Tynsong had said the matter of relocation of residents of Them Iewmawlong could end up in court for a final verdict if the Harijan Panchayat Committee (HPC) demands more than the government can accommodate. “This is a genuine case that is why we are so open, but of course if your demand is for heaven, maybe it is beyond our consideration,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
Tynsong said the state government is preparing a blueprint of the proposal to relocate all 342 households to its revenue land.
A day before on Monday, Tynsong had said that the HPC has agreed to the relocation as per the recommendation of the high-level committee, but with certain conditions. “They wanted that all the 342 households, who have already been inventorised way back in 2008, be shifted to one location that is within the government revenue land, to which we have agreed,” Tynsong has said, post chairing a meeting with the delegation of the HPC for the second time, on Monday.
The deputy chief minister had further informed that once the unit is constructed, the HPC wants its ownership to be passed down the generations. “This is one of the conditions that they want the government to agree upon and we have decided to prepare a blueprint in this regard,” said Tynsong.