TURA, April 2 - BJP leader Bernard N Marak, who is already peeved over the recent passing of the Garo Customary Law Bill by the GHADC, hit out at the Bill once again and speculated that pure blooded Garos would become minorities in the Garo Hills if the Bill was not repealed.
�In time, Garo Customary Law (GCL) will become the worst nightmare for the �pure� Garos. When �half-breed� Garos are not considered as Garos anymore and only �pure� Garos are considered as genuine Garos (STs), the tribal population in Garo Hills will shrink to a mere thousand. Imagine the people�s anguish when they realise that they have become minorities in Garo Hills, just like Tripura,� said Bernard in a release today.
He felt that most constituencies in Garo Hills will not have ST seats any more as �half-breed� Garos would add to the general population, thereby making many constituencies general.
�Even worse is that these seats will not be won by so-called �genuines� as people in general would opt for vision-oriented leaders. And when majority seats are won by non-Garos, a new Bill can be introduced in the State Assembly and passed in the interest of the non-Garos,� he added.
�According to the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution (Para 12A) the Act passed by the State would overlap the Bill passed by GHADC and that will be a nightmare to many,� he felt.
Bernard alleged that it was a political agenda of a few people for what he considered a hastily- passed Bill.
�Once it becomes an Act, the worst will unfold,� opined Bernard. The BJP leader demanded the Bill to be repealed in the interest of all.
�The intention of the GCL Committee and Denang-led EC is questionable. Whether they examined the political, economic and social repercussions before placing the Bill or were they simply too dumb to see the bigger picture? Either way, it would have a negative impact on the peaceful coexistence of the �Garos�,� he added.
He urged the people who supported the Bill to see the bigger picture. �Treat this as an insight as there are thousands out there who are not scared to face what may be. For the safery of the Garos, this Bill needs to be repealed immediately,� stated the release.
