“The land is not theirs to give” says AITC chief Mukul Sangma; Assam Meghalaya border row
Following a signing of an agreement by both chief ministers, the long-pending Meghalaya Assam land dispute was settled last month as 6 of the disputed areas were resolved by signing MoU. Since than, in these areas, there is great outrage on the part of the locals and the political parties, as the deal not serving the interests of the locals.
Meanwhile, Mukul Sangma, the Leader of the Opposition and President of the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC), ripped into the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Meghalaya and Assam to resolve the 50-year-old interstate border issue on Wednesday, stating that ‘the land was not theirs to give’.
To obtain a sense of the situation and give his thoughts on what had happened, the former Chief Minister travelled to Mawiong under Ri-Bhoi and Mallangkona in West Khasi Hills (WKH).
“After the MoU was signed, the government convened a conference of all political parties to address the situation with us. What good is a dialogue if you’ve already decided how the conflict will be resolved unilaterally? To demonstrate that the arrangement is fair, you’ve incorporated areas that were never in dispute into the contested areas. “This is not your land to give,” Mukul stated during a meeting in the Mallangkona community. Mukul explained that one had go back in time to see how the argument began.
Under several Councils, the land belongs to the A’king, the Hima, and the Dolloi. Even if a person wished to join Assam, he would be unable to do so without the approval of these ruling authorities. That is the Sixth Schedule’s spirit. “No one has the right to alienate these properties in the manner in which they have,” he added.
Six of the 12 contested territories have signed the MoU, with the Garo Hills still to be included. Two villages in the North Garo Hills, Rangkhet and Dabolapara, have been mentioned in the WKH district.
Dissecting the MoU further, Mukul questioned how the two states’ land conflict could be resolved in just two meetings. He further slammed claims that the present settlement was based on a survey conducted in 2011, while he was the CM. He claimed that the process utilised to settle the disagreement was incorrect, and he advised the administration not to rush into a decision.
Mukul also chastised the United Democratic Party (UDP) and other allies for being mute about the escalating tensions. The current situation in the border areas, he claimed, was visibly strained.
“You can already hear people muttering that the Memorandum of Understanding ought to be revisited by their own leaders.” When this was imposed on the citizens of the state, where were they? The land may be in Meghalaya’s jurisdiction, but it is not for the CM to give away,” Mukul remarked.
He argued that the people rejected the MoU since it was not in their interests to lose their Sixth Schedule status if they became part of Assam. The sudden relocation of such areas into Assam meant that in the years to come, the people would become landless as was happening in other Garo-dominated areas of Assam.
“There is no politics here,” AITC leader said, promising to support those who gathered at Mallangkona. All of us as a people have a duty to do so, he said. The betterment of our tribes is more significant than politics. Mukul pledged to continue fighting even if we did not have the numbers.
