Shillong: Meghalaya TMC president Charles Pyngrope wants a hard look at how outsiders, suspected of being Bangladeshi, are snagging Khasi surnames. These infiltrators use the names to score Indian voter IDs and state benefits meant for indigenous tribes. The scheme threatens local identity near the border.
Groups like the FKJGP and KSU recently flagged people without tribal roots grabbing local surnames. Pyngrope says the state must stop looking only at the voters and start chasing the paperwork. He wants to know exactly who signed off on those identities.
"The first question should be directed to the district administration and the traditional authorities on how such individuals managed to obtain valid documents. Those responsible for issuing such documents must be identified and held accountable," Pyngrope said. He warned that district officials and village heads like Sordars and Rangbah Shnongs face real accountability if they rubber-stamped these papers.
Pyngrope claims Meghalaya’s border is easier to police than West Bengal. He says outsiders won't wreck the state's demographics. He now wants the Election Department to lean on local village leaders during the electoral roll revision. These leaders know every face in town and can spot a fraud a mile away.
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