Shillong, Feb 25: A committee headed by Bindo M Lanong on Friday handed over the new Khasi Hills Autonomous District (Social Custom of Clan Administration) Bill, 2020 which seeks to bar a non-tribal from taking the surname of a Khasi clan.
The Bill also barred a Khasi from following the patrilineal system by acquiring his/her clan name from the father side and misrepresentation of a Khasi clan by wrongly spelling the clan names.
“After one year of our sitting, we decided to hand over this KHAD (Social Custom of Clan Administration) Bill, 2020 before the executive committee through the KHADC chief Titosstarwell Chyne,” Lanong told reporters after chairing a meeting of the committee.
Also present were former session judge Herman Nongrum, educationist Aristotle Lyngdoh, former diplomat R Wahlang, Clan elder E Suting and joint secretary of the council A Nonghuloo.
The committee was constituted by the KHADC on April 7, 2020 after the KHAD (Social Custom of Clan Administration) Bill, 2018 was returned by the Governor with a message in 2019.
The nominated MDC said the preamble of the Bill itself is a matrilineal aspect of the law and the Khasi community is known as a matrilineal society.
“Whoever is a Khasi will have to identify himself/herself as a person who claims the title from a mother. Anybody who goes beyond the purview of this law in respect of taking a title from the father henceforth will be barred,” he said.
Lanong further informed that the clan legislation also barred non-Khasis from taking a Khasi title in order to enjoy the privileges which a Khasi is entitled to.
“There is a clause that no one will be able to adopt a Khasi title fraudulently by fraud, the way some people have been doing in order to enjoy the benefits, rights and privileges. There are cases by fraud they have been able to enter perhaps by going to court through affidavit and other declaration and other form of approaches but when this bill will come into the premises of the law, when KHADC will pass this bill, when the Governor will assent this Bill, all these frauds will come to an end,” it said.
Lanong said that the committee had gone into the message of the Government and addressed it.
“Everything now has come forward in the form of a big Bill where there is clarity even in respect of the message of the Governor when he referred to Article 21 of the Indian Constitution on the matter of equality and this and that. So we have dealt with that question also,” he added.
He stated that the Bill also barred Khasis from anglicizing the Khasi title to a pro-English title.
“Whoever goes to the court by an affidavit or by a declaration or obtain a certificate as such desired by him and if it does not conquer with the title as recognized by the clan it will be barred, it will be forfeited and it will be cancelled and no recognition will be given to such cases,” he said adding that therefore, a title adopted by any person who claims to be Khasi has to be conquered with the actual spelling and title as accepted by the different clans.
Lanong also warned that whoever violates any part of this law by making a false claim will not only be barred, be cancelled but he will face the scanner of the law.
He further informed that a tribunal will also be set up to ensure there will be justice for everyone adding whoever finds himself to have been debarred illegally or unduly punished by the authority then such person can seek justice by approaching the tribunal as per provisions of this law.
The senior member said that it will depend on the executive committee to study and introduce the new Bill in the upcoming session or whenever they feel like.
When asked, Lanong said that the Bill will be applicable to whoever is a Khasi wherever he/she may be. “Whoever is a Khasi and wherever he/she may be, may be in Jaintia Hills, Delhi or even in a foreign land, this law will be applicable to him/her,” he said.
