Mukul Sangma Slams MDA Govt, Claims Illegal Mining Enabled Through Systematic Plot

Leader of Opposition in Meghalaya Mukul Sangma has accused the NPP-led MDA government in the state of adhering to “a well-scripted modus operandi” to allow illegal coal mining activities in the state.
Sangma’s accusation comes in the wake of the death of 33 laborers in an illegal coal mine in East Jaintia Hills on February 5. Warning that coal-related illegalities will continue in the state as long as the NPP-led MDA government is allowed to continue in power, he said, “the state government seems to be on a predetermined strategy to allow illegal activities to continue, and in the process, perpetrators become more emboldened.” Recalling that NGOs, political parties, and even the opposition had raised instances of illegal coal mining in the past, Sangma said, “There is evidence beyond doubt that illegalities in respect of illegal coal mining have only grown in scale over the years.

“The recent deadly mishap was the fallout of illegalities allowed to go on by authorities,” the Opposition leader alleged, adding that a “deep-rooted complicity could be ruled out”. “These instances leave behind a blot on the integrity of the people of the state, and it is unacceptable,” he said. Pointing out that a PIL on illegal coal mining has been pending in the High Court of Meghalaya since 2022, he said the government is deliberately ensuring that all new instances of illegal coal mining are clubbed in that PIL.
“These new instances must be segregated and tried in the Court,” he said, adding that the one-man Committee of Justice (retd) B.P. Katakey has submitted 35 reports, which are self-explanatory and reflect on the quantum of instances of illegalities.

He however raised doubts whether the Judicial Inquiry Commission, which has two former state officers, would maintain transparency, stating that the Union government must shoulder responsibility for the inquiry. Sangma said the state and central governments are equally responsible for holding an inquiry, as coal is under the Union government, and any inquiry into the incident has to be appointed by the Centre, as the illegalities go beyond the borders of Meghalaya.