Northeast Desk, 13th March: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma asserted on Tuesday that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) would not affect the state due to the exemption of sixth schedule areas from its purview. Meanwhile, several organizations, including the North East Students Organisation (NESO), protested against the CAA’s implementation by burning copies of the notification.
NESO chairman Samuel B Jyrwa led the protest at the Khasi Students Union (KSU) monument, joined by leaders of the KSU, a constituent of NESO in Meghalaya. Sangma explained, “From Meghalaya’s point of view, it (CAA) doesn’t really impact us much because the Sixth Schedule areas are completely exempted from the CAA.”
He further stated that nearly the entire state, except for a small non-scheduled area, falls under the Sixth Schedule, ensuring that the CAA would have minimal impact. Sangma clarified that the state government would continue to engage with the Centre on this matter.
Most tribal areas in northeastern states, including those under the 6th Schedule, have been excluded from the CAA’s purview, which aims to grant citizenship to persecuted minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.
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