Committee urges Governor on minority issue

From A Reporter

SHILLONG, Mar 3: The Coordition Committee of Seng Khasi and Sein Raij urged the Governor Banwarilal Purohit to recognize those people of the Khasi and Jaintia Community who profess the Niam Khasi and Niam Tre as minorities in the state.

In the memorandum submitted to the Governor, the Coordition Committee pointed out that under the Constitution of India in Article 29 (1) and 29 (2) any section of the citizens residing in the territory of India or any part thereof having a distinct language, script or culture of its own shall have the right to conserve the same and no citizen shall be denied admission into any educatiol maintained by the state or receiving aid out of state funds on grounds only of religion, race, caste, language or any of them.

In the memorandum the representatives of the indigenous faith also stated that under the mandate of the Article 30 (1) of the Constitution of India, minorities are based on religion or language whereby the expression “minorities” based on religion, attracts three elements, mely-the existence of a minority, it being based on a religion and the basis being religion in the sense in which the word used in Article 30 (1).

The memorandum submitted to Purohit, cited that after the passing of the tiol Commission for Minority (NCM) Act 1992 to look after the welfare of the minority communities, the Central Government by notification dated October 23, 1993 has declared Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) as minority communities on a tion-wide basis.

In the memorandum to Purohit, the Seng Khasi and Sein Raij said based on the TMA Pai Foundation versus State of Kartaka judgment, the Niam Khasi and Niam Tre fall squarely within the meaning of Article 29 (1), 29 (2) and 30 (1).