Staff Reporter
NAMSAI, Jan 27: Restive over the delay by the Arunachal Pradesh government in coming out with a definite report on granting permanent resident certificates (PRC) to the long-residing non-APST communities in the state, a conglomeration of organisations has announced a ‘PRC maha rally’ and an indefinite shutdown in eastern Arunachal from 28 January.
The United Indigenous People Forum of Lekang, the United People’s Movement of Lekang and the Deori Tribal Welfare Association, who are heading the rally and the shutdown, informed that the indefinite shutdown will be in place from 6 am on Monday.
In a letter to the extra assistant commissioner of Lekang circle in Namsai district, the organisations said they are calling the rally and the shutdown because of the Arunachal government’s “failure of reissuing/granting of PRC as a New Year gift by January 2019 to the deprived indigenous people of Lekang circle.”
They also condemned the statement of joint high power committee (JHPC) chairman Nabam Rebia that the draft PRC report would be ready in the next two weeks, and questioned the necessity of resubmission of report on the PRC issue.
They said the family dossiers have been submitted twice by “the deprived indigenous people of Lekang circle” to the authority concerned for reissuing/granting PRCs during the tenure of the cabinet sub-committee headed by late Jarbom Gamlin, and also to the first JPHC under the chairmanship of then MP Takam Sanjoy.
The delay by the state government, they said, “might delay the process of PRC issue before the effect of model code of conduct.”
“The delay is complete failure of meeting the commitment made by Chief Minister Pema Khandu and Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein,” the organisations said.
On whether the cause of the delay could be the protests by student and other organizations of the state, the conglomeration said it was for the government to declare its stand on the pressure groups.
The conglomeration also said the land inhabited by the long-residing non-APST communities should be separated from the state of Arunachal Pradesh, under the provisions of the Indian constitution, if the state government was unable to grant PRCs to the non-APST communities of Lekang circle and other places of the state within a stipulated time.
It said January 2019 was the last ultimatum to the government of Arunachal “to grant the long-cherished demand of reissuing PRC to the deprived indigenous people of Lekang circle and other places of Arunachal Pradesh.”
