Cong flays HAC decision, calls BJP Govt anti-tribal
Source: Chronicle News Service

Imphal, October 18 2024: While urging all tribal MLAs to ensure that the district council elections are conducted at the earliest, Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) has raised the demand that the recent recommendation of the Hill Areas Committee (HAC) should be withdrawn immediately.

Addressing media persons on Friday at Congress Bhawan, here, former minister Samuel Jendai, who recently joined the Congress party, contended that the HAC recommendation infringes on right of the tribal people for local self-governance.

He accused the BJP, which in power both at the centre and in the state, of violating constitutional provisions, and undermining significance of local self-governance, established through democratic elections.

Samuel contended that the BJP government's sinister agenda could be comprehended from its handling of the HAC recommendations.

Further claiming that the people had experienced similar attitude of the BJP in its management of Panchayati Raj in the valley districts, Samuel reiterated that the HAC recommendation cannot be implemented, as it is against rights of the hill dwellers.

Reflecting on constitution of the HAC for welfare of people in the hill areas, specifically to oversee the election process and facilitate local self-governance, the former minister explained that as per the District Council Act of 1971, term of the district councils may be extended for One year on completion of the five-year term, to facilitate preparations for fresh elections.

However, in Manipur, district council elections remained pending for the past four years.

In-spite of the cabinet decision for initiating formal process to conduct the election, there has been no follow-up measures, he elaborated.

Samuel also stated that despite claims of initiation for conduct of the district council election, recommendation No.59 of the HAC specified that district councils would function under a 20-member team comprising ADC members, local self-governance experts, prominent individuals, intellectuals, and two government nominees from the respective districts.

As such arrangement undermines the rights of the tribal population, tribal MLAs should reconsider and demand withdrawal of the recommendations and take decisive steps to ensure that the district council elections are held, he stressed.

On the other-hand, MPCC president Keisham Meghachandra, in a post on X said, "The BJP government is anti-hill people, anti-tribal as this BJP government has deliberately chosen not to conduct ADCs elections for the last 4 years".

Manipur has six autonomous district councils.

Meghachandra also lashed out at the resolution passed by the HAC under the Manipur Legislative Assembly on October 14 stating that the committee following a threadbare discussion unanimously resolved to "recommend to the government of Manipur to conduct the long pending Autonomous District Councils election as soon as possible".

The committee also informed that in order to run the administration of the ADCs, a committee consisting of 20 members for each ADC shall be constituted of whom 18 shall be elected from former ADC members/experts in local self-governance/eminent persons/intellectuals and two government nominees of the district till the ADC election is conducted.

Meghachandra termed the resolution as "unconstitutional, illegal and void of any source of law from the Constitution" and claimed that the HAC has no constitutional authority to pass any such resolution.

He said the last election to ADCs was held by Congress government in 2015 and its term ended in 2020.The BJP government came to power in Manipur in 2017 and since 2020 there have been no elections to ADCs for the last 4 years.

"...temporary arrangement of functioning the ADCs through illegal means of selection by the BJP government must immediately stop in the larger interests of the people of the hills of Manipur," he said.

By not holding ADC elections for the last four years, the financial devolution, central grants-in-aid, central financing, MGNREGS, central schemes related to ADCs and the Finance Commission awards are being denied to the people of the hills in the state, the state Congress president alleged.

(With inputs from PTI) .

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