Meghalaya HC to state govt: Acquire land for common burial grounds for all faiths

The Meghalaya government has been directed to take immediate steps toward acquiring land for setting up common burial grounds for all faiths.

The directives were issued by Meghalaya High Court on July 7, while hearing a PIL on the shortage of burial spaces for various communities, including Khasis and Jaintias.

The division bench, comprising Chief Justice IP Mukerji and Justice W Diengdoh, acknowledged the acute shortage of public burial spaces and noted the reluctance among certain denominations to share private cemeteries with others.

The court also noted that these groups had no objection to sharing cemeteries acquired and designated by the government for common use, regardless of faith.

“Villages, or at least a significant number of them, have community land belonging to the village people in common. A part of it may be gifted for common burial purposes,” the court said.

To facilitate consensus, it directed the formation of a committee headed by the chief secretary to engage with all stakeholders, including the tribal councils, churches, and administrative officials.

The committee will deliberate on the acquisition of land for common burial grounds, mechanisms to resolve inter-denominational disputes over cemetery access and potential use of village lands for burial purposes, it said.

The HC asked the amicus curiae in the case to file a report containing the minutes of all stakeholder meetings.