TURA: A coalition of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) from Garo Hills has submitted a memorandum to Deputy Chief Minister, Prestone Tynsong, who is also the Minister in charge of District Council Affairs in Meghalaya, urging the state government to endorse a new eligibility requirement for candidates contesting the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council elections.
The conglomerate of organisations—including the Association for Democracy and Empowerment (ADE), A·chik Holistic Awakening Movement (AHAM), A·chik Youth Welfare Organization (AYWO), Federation for A·chik Freedom (FAF), Federation of Khasi Jaintia and Garo People (FKJGP), and the Garo Students’ Union (GSU)—has demanded that the submission of a Scheduled Tribe (ST) certificate be made mandatory for individuals aspiring to contest for the post of Member of District Council (MDC).
In their memorandum, the CSOs expressed strong support for a notification issued by the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) on February 17, 2026, which seeks to restrict the participation of non-tribal candidates in the Council elections.
The organisations argued that the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution was created specifically to safeguard the land, culture, and political rights of indigenous tribal communities.
“The provisions of the Sixth Schedule should apply strictly to bonafide Scheduled Tribes residing within the jurisdiction of the Autonomous District Councils,” the CSOs stated, emphasizing that an ST certificate must be a non-negotiable requirement for candidates.
The CSOs described the situation in the GHADC as unusual compared to other Autonomous District Councils in India. According to them, members of the Bengali-speaking Muslim non-tribal community have historically contested MDC seats in the Council.
They claimed this practice contradicts the spirit and intent of the constitutional provisions designed to protect tribal self-governance.
The organisations further pointed out that tribal communities in Garo Hills have been demanding a review of non-tribal participation in the Council’s electoral process for several decades.
In the memorandum, the CSOs urged the Department of District Council Affairs to officially recognise the GHADC’s February 17 notification and publish it in the Gazette of Meghalaya at the earliest.
According to the organisations, formal publication of the notification would serve two key purposes:
First, it would ensure that the constitutional safeguards granted to hill tribes in Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Tripura are not diluted.
Second, they believe it could help ease the growing tensions between tribal and non-tribal communities currently residing in the Garo Hills region.
