SHILLONG:
The opposition All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) has slammed the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government alleging that the ruling dispensation has failed to push state-specific issues at the national level, which the Mamata Banerjee-led party has been doing consistently.
Referring to the demand for inclusion of Garo and Khasi languages in the Eighth Schedule which was discussed in the zero hour on August 2 in the parliament, the party, in a statement, claimed that it was impact of the protest AITC leaders held outside the parliament on July 26.
“With this matter coming up for discussion in parliament today, Meghalaya TMC has proven itself to be a credible alternative that has and will continue to push Meghalaya-specific issues at the national level, something that the ruling dispensation has failed to do ever since coming to power,” the statement read.
Training guns at the MDA for being indifferent towards the issue, the AITC said that the government’s apathetic attitude has only contributed to the rampant unemployment in the state.
“Inclusion of these two languages will benefit the people of the state. After being recognised nationally, these languages could be taught in high schools, used as a second language for competitive examinations, and open more job opportunities for the youth,” said the statement.
Earlier in the day, AITC MP Sudip Bandopadhyay, while discussing the issue at the Lok Sabha, urged the Union government to take cognisance of the state’s demand to include Garo and Khasi in the eighth schedule.
He said that Article 29 of the Constitution states that a section of citizens having a distinct language, script, or culture has the right to conserve the same. Under the Meghalaya State Legislature Act 2005, Garo and Khasi have been declared associate official languages.
According to the Census 2011, there are over 13 lakh (46.5%) Khasi speakers and 9 lakhs (31.5%) Garo speakers. The issue in inclusion of the two languages has been the lack of their own original script, he added.
“Less than a week after TMC leaders raised state specific issues in the national capital, today the Parliament has listed one of the most crucial topics, that of inclusion of Garo and Khasi languages in the Eighth Schedule for discussion in the zero hour,” the statement read.
On July 26, a delegation of AITC leaders including Dr Mukul Sangma and MLA George Lyngdoh along with MPs held a protest outside the Parliament demanding the repeal of the Assam Meghalaya border pact and the inclusion of Garo and Khasi languages in the Eighth Schedule.
AITC Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien, on July 5, had written to the Secretary General of the Rajya Sabha to discuss the matter pertaining to the languages of Meghalaya.
On September 27, 2018, the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly had adopted a resolution to petition the central government to include the Khasi and Garo languages in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.
Meanwhile, calling it a “historic day”, AITC legislator from Umroi, George B Lyngdoh, said, “Never before have we seen a national party taking the voices of the people of Meghalaya to a protest outside the parliament. It is indeed much more important to note that the voices were not only raised outside the parliament, but also inside.”