Centre still examining ILP for Meghalaya, says CM Conrad Sangma

(By Ibankyntiew Mawrie)

SHILLONG

Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Thursday said that following the State Assembly’s unanimous resolution last year for adopting the Inner Line Permit (ILP), the matter was under the examination of the central government.

“Concerning the ILP, we have seen the demand for ILP over the years, and it was only in 2019 that we unanimously passed a resolution to urge the Centre to include Meghalaya under ILP. It was a historic resolution,” Sangma said, speaking during the fifth day of the Meghalaya Assembly Autumn Session, adding that several central leaders were urged to look into the matter.

Sangma had moved the resolution to adopt the ILP under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873, in Meghalaya's Legislative Assembly on December 2019. The resolution had gained the support of members across all political parties and was adopted unopposed.

Currently, the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram have the implementation of ILP, with the Centre extending the same to Manipur in December last year following the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act.

Addressing the issue of implementation of the Meghalaya Residents Safety and Security Act (MRSSA) raised by the opposition, Sangma said that the government had already forwarded the amended bill to the governor.

“When the new governor came in, it took time for him to study the bill and had recently sent the file back to the government with suggestions. We are currently examining the suggestions sent by the governor. The process has already started,” Sangma said.

“Because of COVID, without the revised MRSSA, we are, however, implementing the norms indirectly. We have taken multiple steps to achieve this goal without infringing into the fundamental rights of the people. We have to strike a balance to ensure that genuine citizens of the country do not suffer.”

Sangma also said that to monitor entry, the government had created a mobile app for people who wanted to enter the state during the present times of COVID-19.

“This is a comprehensive app that enables people to register, book hotels, cabs and other facilities. This in turn makes the job of the officials easier to monitor the entry of people into our state. We already see that the screening process has already started,” he said.

“This is a comprehensive app that enables people to register, book hotels, cabs and other facilities. This, in turn, makes the job of the officials easier to monitor the entry of people into our state. We already see that the screening process has already started,” he said.

(Edited by Anirban Paul & Andre Kongri)