The ILP Riddle

On Tuesday, different pressure groups under the aegis of the Confederation of Meghalaya Social Organizations (CoMSO) held a black day protest in the State demanding implementation of Inner Line Permit (ILP) so that influx into the State, already bearing a heavy burden of immigrants, is countered effectively. The CoMSO has asked Chief Minister Conrad Sangma to convene a meeting of the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) as well as a cabinet meeting to get a clear picture of the government’s stand on ILP. “The main objective of the (Tuesday’s) programme is to protest against the Meghalaya government for not fulfilling its promise to insert the proviso of ILP in the Meghalaya Residents Safety and Security Act 2016 by way of amendment in the last State Assembly session,” CoMSO vice-chairman Nikman Marak said, adding that ILP’s significance stems from the need for safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the indigenous people of the State. Needless to say, Meghalaya bears a very heavy brunt of influx from Bangladesh as well as from Nepal, imperilling indigenous interests, including, very importantly, the economic interest. What is peeving the CoMSO is that the Conrad Sangma government’s stand on the ILP issue is ambiguous. Since the government is accountable to the people, especially the sons of the soil – and here we are talking of a chief minister who has all along taken a very clear stand against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 despite being an ally of the BJP bent on bringing the bill back if voted to power again – its stand on the contentious issue ought to be very clear. There cannot be any room for any riddle. Nonetheless, the question also needs to be raised as to whether an ILP regime would impact upon the roaring tourism sector. A sensible and informed debate is in order.