Meghalaya CM to hold talks over Citizenship Bill with PM Modi in Delhi

Guwahati, January 16, 2019:

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has recently come out strongly against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016. The Chief Minister had also stated that his National People’s Party (NPP) is re-evaluating its alliance with the BJP due to the Bill.

Now reports have emerged that Sangma, along with a delegation of the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance is going to national capital Delhi to hold talks with the BJP high command including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

Sangma is scheduled to meet Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday.

In regards to the Bill, Sangma has assured that he will express the concerns of the citizens of the state and Northeastern people as a whole.

The delegation will also discuss several other issues including exempting Meghalaya from the purview of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, Coal Mines Nationalization Act, 1973 and the National Games 2022.

[caption id="attachment_21441" align="alignnone" width="660"] A molotov cocktail was hurled at the BJP headquarters in Shillong[/caption]

It is to be mentioned that the Meghalaya government has passed an official resolution opposing the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill which seeks to provide citizenship status to persecuted minorities from neighbouring Islamic countries of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The contentious Bill has been protested all over the Northeast including Meghalaya, where the BJP’s regional office was vandalized.