VPP says people of Khasi and Jaintia should be recognized as “one community”

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaJune 14, 2024

The opposition Voice of the People Party (VPP) has suggested that the percentage of reservation for Khasi-Jaintia, Garos, Scheduled Castes and other tribes should be based in terms of their population as per the 1971 census even as it asserted need to recognize Khasi-Jaintias as one community.

In a letter to the Expert Committee on State Reservation Policy on Friday, VPP president Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit said, “The percentage of reservation for Khasi-Jaintia, Garos, Scheduled Castes and other tribes should be based in terms of their population as per the 1971 census. The Khasi-Jaintia community should be taken as one community.”

Basaiawmoit said that the state job reservation policy inspite of the fact that it states “representation in terms of their population”, the accurate official census data was not taken into consideration while allocating the percentage of reservation.

“Therefore, the allocation of 40 percent for the Khasi-Jaintia, 40 percent for the Garos and 5 percent for the SC and other STs lacked logical and scientific basis. The percentage was based on assumption rather on facts. Hence, it went against the very basis of the policy itself,” he said while adding “That the failure  of the government of Meghalaa to put in place the roster system while implementing the job reservation was eventually corrected by the judgment of the honourable Meghalaya High Court in 2022.”

“In view of this, the over-representation and under-representation of the respective communities due to interchangeability provision of the 1972 policy as per the allotted percentage would be gradually corrected henceforth,” he further added.

He said that separate percentage of reservation should be allotted for the SC and the other STs adding that proficiency in either of the Associate Official Languages of the State, i,e Khasi or Garo should be made as a condition for consideration for appointments to both the reserved and unreserved posts in the state.

“Only the domicile of Meghalaya should be considered for appointments to both reserved and unreserved posts in Meghalaya,” he added