Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Wednesday said that the April 10 elections to the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council have been postponed, India Today NE reported.
The statement came a day after two persons were killed in suspected police firing in the West Garo Hills district amid tensions surrounding the nomination process.
The decision to postpone the election was taken “keeping sentiments of the people in mind”, the chief minister was quoted as saying by Highland Post. “We will sit and decide how to take the procedure ahead, but till then the decision has been made...” he added.
The firing on Tuesday took place in the Chibinang area after a clash broke out between tribal and non-tribal groups in connection with the polls, the police said.
Both of those killed were non-tribal residents, West Garo Hills Deputy Commissioner Vibhor Aggarwal told Scroll.
Tensions had been simmering in the West Garo Hills between tribal and non-tribal communities after a Garo man died after being attacked by unidentified assailants in January. The man was a member of ACHIK, a non-governmental organisation that had visited an allegedly illegal stone quarry in the Rajabala area to “inspect” activities there.
Ethnic faultlines widened after the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council issued a notification barring non-tribal persons from contesting the election to the council.
The notification made it mandatory for all candidates to possess a Scheduled Tribe certificate. Leaders of non-tribal communities have described the mandate as an unconstitutional decision to deprive them of their rights.
On Tuesday, the Meghalaya High Court set aside the notification, which required candidates to submit a Scheduled Tribe certificate with their nomination papers.
The nomination process began on Monday, after which protests had erupted in the region against non-tribal persons being allowed to contest the polls.
On Monday, a mob of about 50 persons assaulted former Phulbari MLA Esmatur Mominin when he was going to the district commissioner’s office to file his nomination for the election. This led to a night curfew being imposed in 37 sensitive villages of the district.
High Court quashes tribal certificate rule
The High Court on Tuesday set aside the notification that made submitting a Scheduled Tribe certificate compulsory for candidates filing nomination papers for elections to the council.
The court held that the notification could not pass legal scrutiny under the 1951 Assam and Meghalaya Autonomous Districts Constitution of District Councils Rules, which govern district council elections and the framework for autonomous district councils under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
A voter had challenged the notification in the High Court, arguing that it violated the provisions of the 1951 rules that govern the qualifications of electors and candidates in district council polls.
The court observed that ever since the district council was formed, the two rules have remained unchanged, preserving “the right of every enrolled voter either tribal or non-tribal to be qualified to be a member or voter”.
The two rules are Rule 8 that say that a person entitled to vote in the district council election is also qualified to be a member. Rule 128 lays down qualifications to be a voter.
“…since its inception in the list of elected members from 1952 onwards, non-tribals have featured and are present,” the court noted. “It is a well-established fact, that non-tribals residing in the concerned constituencies have been participating in, and have also been elected to the council as members.”
The court observed that the notification had sought to change the situation because of a “change in demographics” and limit participation only to members of the Scheduled Tribe community.
The High Court noted that the notification had been issued based on a resolution of the Executive Committee and under powers purported to be derived under Paragraph 2 of the Sixth Schedule.
However, the court said that the Executive Committee is only allowed to refer proposals to the District Council for approval and does not have the authority to frame rules on its own.
It observed that the notification had been issued only at the level of the Executive Committee and had not been placed before the District Council for approval.
The notification “to have effect in law would also have to pass the rigours of Rule 72”, which states that rules are to be made by the District Council and compulsorily need the governor’s assent.
In view of this, the court held that the notification could not pass legal scrutiny and set it aside.
The Garo Hills Autonomous District Council has 30 constituencies, out of which elections are held for 29 seats. The Meghalaya governor nominates the remaining member.
In at least five of these constituencies located along the plains, Bengali-speaking or Bengali-origin Muslims influence the election results. Muslims comprise more than 70% of the population in this region, The Hindu reported.
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