Shillong, June 27: The High Court of Meghalaya has admitted a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition filed by Syngkhong Rympei Thymmai (SRT) regarding the Scheduled Tribe certificates issued by the Social Welfare Department.
The Society, comprising members of the Khasi tribe, has its registered office at Madan Laban, East Khasi Hills District.
The issue highlighted in the petition concerns the issuance of Scheduled Tribe certificates to Khasis who adopt surnames of either their father or mother, and to non-Khasi women who choose to adopt the surname of their husbands.
The division bench comprising Chief Justice IP Mukerji and Justice W Diengdoh in its order has directed the District Council Affairs (DCA) department to file a report on the matter.
“On the returnable date, the District Council Affairs Department shall file a report in this Court pertaining to issuance of or its views on issuance of Scheduled Tribe certificates to Khasis opting for surnames of their father or mother and to women who choose to adopt the surname of their husbands,” the court said.
The bench has noted that the Khasi Hills Autonomous District (Khasi Social Custom of Lineage) Act, 1997, applies to all Khasis in Khasi Hills District, and provides for registration and grant of Khasi Tribe certificates.
The court expressed its desire to understand how the option of a person to adopt the surname of one’s mother or father could change the obligation of the authority under the said Act to register a Khasi and grant him or her the tribe certificate.
The court has directed the petitioner to serve copies of the petition on all the respondents except the state, which is represented by the counsel.
The petitioner SRT stated that on July 21, 2020, it notified the Deputy Commissioner, East Khasi Hills District by endorsing the advice received from the District Council Affairs Department that the Lineage Act, 1997 did not prohibit the issuance of Scheduled Tribe certificates to those applicants who were adopting “surnames of either from the father or mother and the practice of adopting husband surnames by non-khasi wife.”
By a subsequent communication issued on May 21, 2024, the same Social Welfare Department withdrew the July 21 letter, including the decision contained therein. The petitioner through its counsel submitted that as a result of this communication, issuance of Scheduled Tribe certificates to Khasis has been stopped by the government.
