Congress announces State-wide protest against work permit proposal to Bangladeshis
Source: The Sangai Express / Newmai News Network
Shillong, April 12 2018:
The
Congress party has announced a
Statewide protest against the
proposal of CM Conrad Sangma
to issue work permits to
Bangladeshi Nationals to work
in Meghalaya.
"We are going to have a
Statewide protest starting from
Saturday in the State's capital
and Mendipathar in North
Garo Hills District," the leader
of the Opposition in the Assembly, Dr Mukul Sangma
said on Thursday.
Appealing to the people of
the State to extend full support
to the protest, Dr Sangma also
vowed that the Congress party
will ensure that the present
State Govt is not allowed to
adopt this idea which will have
far reaching ramification to the
State and its people.
"We will ensure that no
work permit is issued for Bangladeshi Nationals in
Meghalaya, a State where you
need to protect the microscopic
population as this will have an
unprecedented ramification and
disastrous future to the State
and our people," he said.
The decision was taken a
few hours after the Congress
staged a walk-out during the
ongoing Assembly session in
protest against the MDA Gov-
ernment's refusal to give up
with its Chief Minister's idea
of issuing work permit to
Bangladeshi Nationals.
He said that the protest is
also in view of the problems
already being faced by
Meghalaya and the North East
region due to influx and illegal
immigration.
Dr Sangma recalled that the
State Govt in preceding years
had spent substantial amount
of time exhaustively engaging
with the various stakeholders
including NGOs to find out
ways and means to deal with
the problem of influx and illegal immigration.
Stating that a
number of initiatives were taken
as an offshoot of the engagement, he however said, "Now
you come up with this idea as
a Government which will defeat the whole endeavour of the
people of the State.
This will
not be acceptable by the people
of the State."
The former CM further
lambasted the Conrad K
Sangma-led Govt of talking
about issuing work permit to
Bangladeshi Nationals while
youth from the State are compelled to go out of the State to
look for work despite the fact
that the environment is not
conducive for them to stay
outside.
Dr Sangma also alleged that the CM, during the
course of the short discussion
on the issue was defending his
idea by saying that it is for
promotion of economic devel-
opment.
"I don't know
whether he (CM) has authored
some books to promote economic development by issuing
work permit to Bangladeshi
Nationals.
We want to know
which economist had given this
advice to him," he said while
asking the MDA not to try and
coach the Congress on how to
improve the growth rate in the
State.
He also said the idea has
emanated within one month of
the State Govt led by the NPP,
which is an ally of the BJP-led
NDA Govt at the Centre, assuming office.
"It has erupted
like a volcano," Dr Sangma
said while stating that idea had
even got the endorsement of
the Union Ministers.
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