DC to submit report on Mahadev Khola land issue; KSU demands eviction of illegal residents

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaAugust 21, 2025

The deputy commissioner of East Khasi Hills is expected to soon submit a report to the state government regarding the Mahadev Khola land dispute, paving the way for a decision on the matter.

This was conveyed during a meeting on Wednesday involving a delegation from the Khasi Students Union (KSU) Laban Circle, the dorbar shnong, police, and pandits of the Mahadev Khola temple.

“The DC has informed that she would submit a report to the state government, which will soon take a decision on the matter,” KSU leader Reuben Najiar told reporters.

Najiar clarified that the union is not against the temple but insists on the eviction of people residing on the land. According to a 1923 land document obtained through an RTI request, the British government had donated the land solely for constructing the temple—not for residential purposes or ownership.

The KSU also raised concerns over the forest department’s stance, questioning how the department could claim that the land no longer belongs to it, despite having collected taxes and issued permissions for years.

Najiar disputed the pandits’ claim that only 64 families live on the temple land, emphasizing that the 1923 document does not allow residential use. “The British government did not give the land as a lease or gift; it was granted only for the purpose of constructing the mandir,” he said.

Referring to the KSU’s eviction drive against illegal encroachers in 2022-23, Najiar added that people from Assam and other states without valid documents had occupied the temple land.

The union has stressed that the land should be used strictly for the temple and that no new structures should be built until the government makes a decision.