|
Meghalaya : Protest, arson at Chief Minister’s house |
 |
The controversy over the Meghalaya Education Board took a turn for the worse on June 25, as protesters targeted the property of Chief Minister D.D. Lapang at Nongpoh.
A portion of the property, which was rented out as an office to the block Congress at Nongpoh in Ri Bhoi district, was torched.
Director-General of Police W.R. Marbaniang said the office section of the property, which is used for the Congress’s block-level activities, was partially damaged. No one has been arrested in this connection.
Again, in the Garo hills, former Lok Sabha Speaker, P.A. Sangma and several non-governmental organisations, adopted a resolution demanding a separate Garo state.
The developments capped a fortnight of agitation in the state, which has widened the divide between the Khasis and the Garos.
After five hours of discussion on June 24, the Congress-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) cabinet decided to authorise the state-level committee to decide on restructuring, revamping and strengthening the Meghalaya Board of Secondary Education.
Lapang said the decisions taken earlier to appoint a full-time chairman for the board at Tura and secretaries with a team of officers at Tura and Shillong would be examined by the panel, which was set up on June 15. The panel has been given two months to come up with a solution.
‘The cabinet decision is ambiguous and it is no different from the decision taken by the Chief Minister earlier.’ Purno Sangma declared. ‘Leaders of the Garo hills, who attended the meeting, took serious exception to the attitude of the government Mtowards the Garo hills and supported the idea of creation of a separate Garo state,’ he added.
|
