Tura, Aug 10: Chief Executive Member (CEM) of the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC), Dhormonath Ch Sangma, has praised the unity shown by all political parties, groups and civil society in passing the landmark separate electoral roll for the council, a move that will henceforth bar non-tribals from voting in future council elections.
“This landmark decision came about because of unity from all sides. There was no opposition or ruling side — instead, there was a shared willingness from everyone that the council ought to belong to the tribals of Garo Hills. For many years we tried but failed due to various problems, but finally this has become a reality. It wouldn’t have been possible without the support and guidance of our Chief Minister, Conrad K Sangma, who provided us valuable advice throughout this journey,” the CEM said.
Opposition rues non-inclusion of “indigenous” word in Bill
Addressing concerns raised by the opposition over the exclusion of the word “indigenous” from the Bill, CEM Sangma clarified that the demand — backed by both the ruling side and the opposition in the council — could not be accommodated for procedural reasons.
“We had earlier mentioned the word ‘indigenous’ when we sent the Bill to the Governor, but it was not accepted. Only ‘ST’ was allowed,” he said.
The CEM further clarified that all Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities in the region, including the Rabha, Garo, Hajong, Koch and Bodo, would face no issues under the new roll, since they fall under the ST category.
Dismissing fears of an influx of other tribes into the region, CEM Sangma said that only voters holding an election ID card from Garo Hills would be recognised under the new electoral roll.
