Radhikamohan Bhagawati Memorial Lecture held in Guwahati

Lawmakers’ consensual voices can make NE to matter in nation’s policy making: Phanjoubam

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Renowned Editor Pradip Phanjoubam on Saturday urged all lawmakers from the North East to work out a mechanism to raise common voice on issues afflicting the region in order to compel the Centre to address the same with a great deal of seriousness and dedication.

“The eight NE States together command 25 Lok Sabha seats. Cutting across party lines, if our representatives can have a mechanism to evolve consensual voices on the issues of the region, the region will begin to matter much more in the policy making processes of the nation. Unity literally is strength in this sense. The region has also 15 Rajya Sabha seats, and currently with one nominated member, Mary Com, the number is 16. If some unity can be brought, this too is a number which cannot be slighted by anybody,” Phanjoubam, Editor, Imphal Free Press said.

Phanjoubam while delivering the second Radhikamohan Bhagowati Memorial Lecture on the issue of need for political understanding and solidarity among the States of Northeast India, at Pragjyoti ITA Culture Centre at Machkhowa here on Saturday, said the need of the hour is evolving a method for working out a calibrated loyalty of MPs of the region.

According to Phanjoubam even though the Parliamentary democracy demands the MPs pledge their loyalties to the party on which tickets they were elected, they can campaign together for the issues associated with greater interest of the region.

Opposing the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016 Phanjoubam said the ongoing protest against the controversial Bill is yet another demonstration of the common destiny that the people of NE share.

Also Read: Guwahati News