ROING, 22 May: The All Idu Mishmi Students’ Union (AIMSU) organised a legal literacy programme here in Lower Dibang Valley district on Wednesday with the aim of strengthening grassroots governance and reviving traditional justice systems through legal awareness among gaon buras and gaon buris of the Idu Mishmi community.
Themed ‘Tradition Meets Law: Strengthening Self-Governance & Promoting Meaningful Participation in Decision-Making Processes’, the programme was designed to empower local traditional leaders with constitutional, statutory, and customary legal knowledge to help them navigate today’s complex governance structures.
The programme witnessed the participation of 49 gaon buras and gaon buris from various villages and members of the public, along with ZPMs, GPMs, GPC, community elders, and youth representatives.
Addressing the participants, Roing MLA Mutchu Mithi commended the AIMSU for “leading such a bold and timely initiative,” and expressed his support for efforts to “institutionalise legal awareness among traditional leaders.”
He encouraged the community to stand united in protecting their rights while adapting to the evolving governance and legal environment.
In the first half of the programme, Dr Tilu Linggi and advocate Madan Mili conducted legal orientation sessions on the evolving powers, responsibilities, and protections afforded to GBs under the Arunachal Pradesh Civil Courts Act, 2021; the Assam Frontier (Administration of Justice) Regulation, 1945; and the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006.
Their presentations highlighted how traditional village heads are legally recognised as vital pillars of local dispute resolution, land management, and tribal governance under the Indian Constitution and local laws.
In the second half of the meeting, the house unanimously adopted a resolution concerning the sale of land within the Idu Mishmi community. The resolution established a formal format and verification mechanism to regulate and restrict the transfer of land ownership.
It was decided that any sale of land by an indigenous Idu Mishmi shall require a document signed by the GB concerned, the AIMSU president and general secretary, and two executive members of the Idu Mishmi Cultural and Literary Society.
“Previous lease agreement executed, if any, shall be verified and freshly executed, and there is a total ban on the sale of land to non-Idu Mishmi indigenous persons, regardless of domicile or state affiliation,” AIMSU president Drone Linggi informed in a release.
“This legal literacy programme marked the beginning of a sustained campaign by the AIMSU to organise similar capacity-building and legal awareness initiatives across Lower Dibang Valley and Dibang Valley region, particularly in remote and vulnerable villages,” the release said.
