Shillong, Dec 21: The Chief Minister, Shri Conrad K. Sangma, in his reply to various queries raised by many Hon’ble MLAs of Meghalaya Legislative Assembly in the Special Session held 19/12/2019 stated – Quote “Conrad pointed out that by the Notification of December 11 this year, which included Manipur under ILP, the Centre has changed the Preamble of the Eastern Bengal Frontier Regulation Act and the word Khasi-Jaintia was deleted though it was there in the earlier.” Unquote – as reported in the media on the 20th December, 2019 under the caption “Assembly Unanimous passes ILP Resolution.”
The above Notification was issued by the Hon’ble President of India under clause (2) of Article 372 to the Constitution of India. If the said Notification was issued before 1953 I would have only one issue to raise : Why Khasi and Jaintia Hills District was remove from the Preamble of the Eastern Bengal Frontier Regulation 1873 without taking our people into confidence? But since the said Notification was issued after the lapsed of 66 (sixty six) years (1953 – 2019) i.e. only on the 11th Decem-ber, 2019.
Mr HS Shylla former CEM of the KHADC and former cabinet minister in the Goverment of Meghalaya said “I have no other option but to refer to clause (3) (a) of the same Article 372 – Quote “Nothing in clause (2) shall be deemed – (a) to empower the President to make any adapta-tion or modification of any law after the expiration of (three years) from the commence-ment of the Constitution ..” Unquote As such the said Notification has no leg to stand. The power to modify or make an amendment with regard to such pre-Constitution laws at any point of time lies only with the Parliament.
He Mr Shylla was also utterly surprised when the Hon’ble Chief Minister, Shri Conrad K. Sangma, was very prompt in acknowledging with pride that the Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills District was removed from the Preamble of the Eastern Bengal Frontier Regulation, 1873 on the 11th December, 2019 and was quick to set aside even the Ruling of the Hon’ble Supreme Court placed before the House by the Hon’ble MLA from Nongpoh.
It was only a few months that we from the KHADC under my leadership as CEM requested him to advice the Hon’ble Governor to issue a Notification enforcing the ILP within the jurisdiction of the KHADC as per the ruling of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, but the Chief Minister openly came out with the statement that ILP is a hundred years old law while answering the question raised by the Editor of Northeast News Channel from Guwahati.
The intention of the Government at the Centre to have the above Notification issued on the same day that the CAB was passed by the Raja Sabha is no longer a secret. It clearly indicate that the Government at the Centre wanted to bargain with the people of Meghalaya as to whether they are contented with the Sixth Schedule or to do away with the Sixth Schedule and be granted with ILP in order to protect ourselves from the impact of the CAA, 2019.
Mr Shylla said that “ we have to strongly abide by the United Khasi-Jaintia Hills Autonomous District (Application of Laws) Regulation, 1952 read together with the Ruling of the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India in the case of the State Government and Ors. Vrs. Ka Byrhien Kurkalang and Ors. Of 1972 [AIR 1972 SC 223, (1972) 1 SCC 148, 1972 2 SCR 506, 1972 (4) UJ 262 SC].”
It would therefore fit and proper for the Chief Minister and all the Hon’ble MLAs of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly to re-convene another Special Session and pass a resolution strongly condemning the Central Government for such unconstitutional removal of Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills District from the Preamble of the the Eastern Bengal Frontier Regulation, 1873 and to immediately restore the Khasi and Jaintia Hills District to its rightful position.
