Rejecting the government of Meghalaya’s un-accommodative stand on relocation, Shillong Sikhs living in the Punjabi Lane area have now appealed to the government to see reason and review their own half-baked blueprint and reiterated their stand to continue to live in their ancestral land, which has been their abode and that of their forefathers since the last two centuries, till an amicable, acceptable to one and all resolution is not found. They say, “We are historical residents of Meghalaya and make no mistake, we are not some illegal encroachers.” A WSN Report.

Terming the proposal of the government for relocation as “incomplete, unsuitable, unprepared, unfair and undemocratic,” the Shillong Sikhs have set the tone for the government to reconsider their 8-point proposal for relocation, which the government had rejected earlier without assigning reasons.

In a detailed reply to the Government of Meghalaya’s blueprint for relocation of residents of Punjabi Lane, Shillong, which can have a far-reaching impact on the resolution of the ongoing dispute, the representative body of the hard-working Sikhs whose forefathers made Shillong their home, when they were taken from Gurdaspur and Amritsar there, the Harijan Panchayat Committee after multiple rounds of consultation with its members, stated that the government proposal was fraught with lacunae and bespoke of the highhandedness of the especially-constituted High-Level Committee of the government.

Significantly, this reply will be taken up for consideration, when the High Court of Meghalaya takes up the matter on 24 April 2023. WSN has reliably learned that the senior lawyers from the DSGMC panel of lawyers will be pleading on behalf of the Shillong Sikhs, as they have been doing for the past 5 years.

The World Sikh News has been consistently monitoring the situation in Shillong and we have noticed that since the formation of the new government barely a month ago, political leaders, ministers and legislators have been using intimidating language through the media, in an attempt to overawe the Sikhs into submission to the government’s proposal. Reacting to such tactics, HPC Secretary Gurjit Singh told the media, “They are putting our lives and properties at risk and making us vulnerable.”

Speaking to World Sikh News, on the phone line from Shillong, the HPC secretary Gurjit Singh the sole warrior for the community there said, “We will not buckle under political duress.”

The HPC has strongly alleged that the “entire exercise is an ill-founded relocation theory, borne out of a minor altercation in May 2018, which actually compels the resident citizens of the Punjabi Lane (Harijan Colony) to forego their rights, title and interest over whatever small land portion in the colony and to accept the prisons cells like accommodation being offered in the proposed Blueprint.”

Reiterating their stand which was presented to the government during the early stage of the talks, some months ago, which were turned by the government, Gurjit Singh said, “Our original demands presented in the “Eight-point resolution” still stand and we will not buckle under political duress merely because it is convenient for the government to do so and simply because due to passage of time, the land has become a commercial goldmine.”

“Our original demands presented in the “Eight-point resolution” still stand and we will not buckle under political duress merely because it is convenient for the government to do so and simply because due to passage of time, the land has become a commercial goldmine.”

“All communities, including Sikhs are irrevocably attached to their religious places. We have a huge, multi-floor Gurdwara Sahib, Temples and a church in the area. Can the government even think of demolishing them in pursuance of their misplaced beautification plan,?” asked Gurjit Singh,

The Shillong Sikhs have once again repeated their original position that the land where they live belongs to the erstwhile King -the Syiem of Mylliem and the government’s move to acquire this is ultra vires of the Meghalaya Land Transfer Act.

Can the government even think of demolishing a Gurdwara, temples and a church in pursuance of their misplaced beautification plan?”

In the blueprint the key question of title, and transfer of rights has not been touched. There is no timeline and the facility being offered is, to say the least “unliveable.” Deriding the government’s haste in the matter, with one minister saying that the dispute will be resolved within the month of April itself, the letter pointed out that, “It has been held by the Supreme Court of India and other courts as well that the right to lead a dignified life is an inalienable right and provisions of housing cannot be such that it is inhabitable for residents to live there. In the light of such judicial pronouncements, the residents are entitled to a better resolution.”

“There are so many grey areas and gaps. The government must clarify all such concerns and only then it can be taken up for consideration by the Harijan Panchayat Committee, without prejudice to our right to reject the proposal” stated Gurjit Singh while speaking to media personnel.

We will not buckle under pressure. We want to live with dignity and honour in our ancestral lands.

Gurjit Singh, Secretary, Harijan Panchayat Committee

In an earnest appeal to the government and people of Meghalaya, Gurjit Singh said, “The government must stop the witch hunt and allow us to build our houses and we can assure that the beauty of the area will be fully maintained and for this, the residents have the full support of the Sikh community.”

Speaking to World Sikh News, Gurjit Singh said, “I have spoken to Panthic associates and organizations. If we are allowed to live where we are living, we will need the Sikh community to garner resources for the construction of our houses and beautification of the place befitting its changed status.” When asked whether the community will come to their rescue, Gurjit Singh said, “I am confident that my people will not miss this opportunity to help us permanently rehabilitate our lives and rebuild our homes.”

“If we are allowed to live where we are living, we will need the Sikh community to garner resources for the construction of our houses and beautification of the place befitting its changed status.”

Reacting sharply to the response of Meghalaya Deputy CM Prestone Tynsong that the government will present details of the relocation to the High Court, Gurjit Singh affirmed, “That is precisely the point.  Why were details not presented earlier?”

Reiterating that the HPC is always ready for talks, consultation and negotiation, Gurjit Singh said that it is nothing but shocking that the Deputy CM is now saying, “How is it possible that they are staying there for 160 years?” Gurjit Singh said that it was the same Deputy CM, who had earlier said that the residents of Punjabi Lane are not illegal settlers.

Referring to historical documents Gurjit Singh reaffirmed, “We are here since 1863, possibly earlier and we are in possession of authentic documents under the name and seal of the Syiem of Hima Mylliem.  In a letter of 2008, the Syiem of Mylliem Darbar has said, inter alia, “…the plot of land was allotted to them long time back by the predecessors of Syiem of Hima Mylliem till today.” In another 1954 document, it is categorically mentioned that the land belongs to the residents of the Harijan Colony.

“Let it be known to everyone, loud and clear that we are legitimate residents of Punjabi Lane. The residents of Punjabi Lane want to live with honour and dignity in the land of their forefathers and it would be improper to treat them as aliens. The solution to this should be peaceful, amicable, mutual and permanent, without trampling on our fundamental rights,” added Gurjit Singh.