What Meghalaya wants: How CAA protests assume a different meaning in the state

The protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (then bill), which began in northeast, have now spread across the nation. As the bill made its way to the tables of Parliament in the first weeks of December 2019, agitations spread like wildfire across the northeast, with more serious cases of unrest being reported in Assam.

While mainland India’s agitation against the act was based on the 'unconstitutional' method of according citizenship on the basis of religion, the northeast was worried more about the danger it posed to the region’s ethnicity, language and culture. The indigenous population of the northeast fear that the influx of immigrants into the region will put their identity and culture at stake, and the CAA, they believe, only adds fuel to the fire.

Meghalaya, too, became a hotbed for anti-CAA protests, with agitations rocking the state capital, Shillong, leading the government imposing curfew and internet shutdown in the city and nearby areas. Student organisations spearheaded protests, with demonstrations and rallies taking place in universities in the state such as the North Eastern Hill University (NEHU).

Like Assam, Meghalaya too is worried about the protection the act offers to immigrants who have flocked in huge numbers to the state. Sharing a 443-km long porous border with Bangladesh has made Meghalaya an easy destination for immigrants.

Immigrants into Meghalaya also include a considerable number of people from Nepal, a process which began in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, beginning with the Indo-Bhutanese war of 1864. These immigrants have settled in the state and established themselves as a significant force, with a majority of them currently running businesses in the city.

Tarun Bhartiya, a filmmaker based in Shillong, says the protests against CAA erupted in the northeast even before it became a nationwide movement. The reason for these agitations, however, is fundamentally different from the protests elsewhere in the country. “The protests in Meghalaya and the northeast are unlike the agitation in the rest of the country. It is about migration.” He cited the example of Tripura, where trans-border migration has had a “disruptive” influence on the state’s demographics. In Tripura, which also shares a border with Bangladesh, the tribal indigenous population has been reduced to a minority.

Bhartiya also mentioned a side of the anti-CAA story that has been seldom discussed. The CAA, in no means, provides any kind of protection to the indigenous tribal population who have migrated from the other side of the border into the state. “Certain tribes in Meghalaya, such as the Khasis, Garos and Hajongs, are also trans-border tribes, who have for years lived in Bangladesh. Cases have been reported where they have been persecuted on their tribal identity and evicted from their land, causing them to migrate into the state. The act, however, fails to provide any sort of protection to these people who have been thrown out of their land.” “Many of these tribals are neither Hindu, nor Christians but follow their traditional religious beliefs and thus would get no protection under the CAA,” he added.

Bhartiya termed CAA a “communal dog whistle law”, as it only recognises a migrant who faced religious persecution, and does nothing to address the tribal populace, who have faced persecution and migrated from Bangladesh.

Meghalaya’s reaction to the CAA also has another dimension. The state wants to be under the Inner Line Permit (ILP) regime, which requires Indian citizens from other states to obtain a permit before entering those states protected by the regime. “The demand for Meghalaya to come under the ILP regime has always been there,” Bhartiya said. Meghalaya is demanding ILP with increased vehemence after it was introduced in Manipur by the Centre.

ILP is being perceived by many groups in the state as a tool to check the influx of illegal immigrants. The Khasi Students' Union (KSU), a prominent player in Meghalaya’s politics, has often come out in vocal support of ILP in the state. President of KSU, Lambok Marngar, was quoted by media recently, urging the Central government “to listen to the voices of the people in Meghalaya since they have been facing many issues with regards to influx over the years.”

As anti-CAA protests became pro-ILP agitations in Meghalaya, the state government took note of the worsening situation and passed a resolution in a special session of the assembly on December 19, urging the Centre to implement ILP in the state. The resolution received unanimous backing of all the MLAs in the assembly. The move by the state assembly, whilst welcomed by many groups such as the KSU, has also drawn flak from many quarters as they dubbed it a move to pacify the protests.