GUWAHATI, Jan 2 � Tarun Vijay, BJP MP has submitted a petition to the Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Justice KG Balakrishnan on the grave violation of human rights of the minority Seng Khasi tribals of Meghalaya. He said that for strange reasons majority of Meghalaya is getting minority benefits and the real minority is denied of benefits of all Union Government and State level schemes meant for the minorities.
The petition was submitted through the Human Rights Defense International, an NGO.
The Chairman of the NHRC Justice KG Balakrishnan, former chief justice of the Supreme Court heard the delegation and has assured action on the petition.
Gogna, General Secretary, Human Rights Defense International, said that inspite of fulfilling all constitutional requirements to be declared as minority, the Seng Khasi tribals, professing indigenous faith, are being discriminated creating an identity crisis and this is an assault on the constitutional provisions as well as the Supreme Court judgement of 2002 that specifically asked that all linguistic and religious minorities who have been put at par in Article 30 have to be considered State wise.
Tarun Vijay said that even the then chairman of the Minorities Commission Dr Tahir Mahmood had written in his report in March 1999 that the State Government must set up a Minorities department, a four member State Minorities Commission and a Finance Corporation for Minorities. �But nothing has been done by the State Government, dominated by the Christian minority, so far. A segment of the society which enjoys minority rights nation wide is denying the same rights to another minority,� he said.
Tarun Vijay further said that it is ironical that 90 per cent of the population is getting minority benefits while the rest 10 per cent is denied those rights. �Is the Government waiting for the Seng Khasis to turn violent and take up other routes to be listened to,� he asked.
