HAC urged to convene meet on ADC Bill
Source: Chronicle News Service / Newmai News Network
Senapati, July 24 2022:
All Naga Students' Association, Manipur (ANSAM) and the Kuki Students' Organisation (KSO) urged the Hill Areas
Committee (HAC) to convene
a meeting "at the earliest and
reiterate the stand on the Autonomous District Council (ADC)
Bill, 2021 as unanimously decided
on August 16, 2021.
The student bodies also urged
the HAC that the same resolution
be communicated to the state
government for tabling of the
ADC Bill in the 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly session and
passing of the same into an act.
In a joint representation submitted to the HAC chairman on
Sunday, ANSAM and KSO termed
the HAC as vanguard of the tribals
in Manipur.
The two bodies said
that the HAC should draw a resolute stand to secure the future of
"tribal population" in the state.
They said that it is the wishes
and the desire of the "tribal populace" to witness the tabling of
the HAC recommended ADC Bill
2021 in the ensuing Assembly and
passing of the same into an act.
According to the joint representation, ATSUM, ANSAM
and KSO had registered strong
resentment with a persistent
people's movement to the state
government for deliberately denying the introduction of the
said bill in the Assembly, which
is "totally dishonouring and disregarding the constitution and
the members of HAC, which is
a systematic repression of the
tribals in the state".
While remaining that subsequent to the spontaneous agitation, an agreement was signed
by the state government with
ATSUM, ANSAM and KSO on
November 25, 2021 whereby the
government agreed to table the
ADC Bill in the winter assembly
session of 2021.
"However, even after a lapse
of 8 months, neither was the
winter assembly session convened nor the bill introduced
in the first session of the 12th
Manipur Legislative Assembly,
which was held in the month of
March 2022," they pointed out.
The joint representation said,
"In the light of the above facts,
we humbly urge that a meeting
of the Hill Areas Committee be
convened at the earliest and
reiterate the stand on ADC Bill,
2021 as unanimously decided on
August 16, 2021" .