Meghalaya Govt to examine HC order on MRSSA

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaDecember 7, 2021

Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Tuesday said the state government will examine the recent court order in connection with the setting up of gates as mandated by the Meghalaya Residents, Safety and Security Act (MRSSA), 2016.

“We will further examine on how to move forward regarding the order that has been given by the high court,” Sangma told journalists.

Stating that necessary action will be taken, the chief minister however maintained that the location (where the entry point is being set up at Umling, Ri Bhoi) also functions as the checking point for COVID protocols and “therefore, those cannot be stopped”.

On December 2, the Meghalaya High Court had stated regulating the entry or movement of Indian citizens into and within the state may be not exercised without indicating any parameters.

The order in this regard was passed by the division bench, which comprises Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice W Diengdoh while hearing a PIL which has challenged the validity of the MRSSA, 2016 and the possible draconian manner in which it may be implemented.

“It is made clear that the apparent omnibus charter conferred by the impugned statute without indicating any parameters for restricting or regulating the entry or movement of Indian citizens into and within the State may be not exercised,” the bench had stated in the order.

It said that though the State refers to Article 19(5) of the Constitution, the grounds on which entry to or movement within the state may be regulated have not been spelt out in the impugned statute or in any rules framed thereunder.

“Indeed, it does not appear that the rule-making authority under Section 20 of the impugned legislation has been invoked at all,” the bench had also stated.

In the PIL, the petitioners had stated that the gates have been set up at several points for checks to be conducted on persons seeking to enter the State.

They further stated that without any objective parameters being set down for denying entry or regulating the movement of any citizen of the country in the State, such check-posts may be impermissible and the exercise of authority thereat may be wholly arbitrary.