An Insight into Arunachal Pradesh

The public hearing for Dibang Multipurpose Project fixed on March 27 at New Anaya is again being asked for cancellation. This time it’s the organizations from neighbouring Assam that has stepped in demanding for scrapping of Dibang project and hence no public hearing. Demanding cancellation of the public hearing, the Sadiya Mohokma Suraksha Samiti, All Tai Ahom Students Union and various political parties from Sadiya have given a bandh call on March 21. The All Assam Students Union has also extended support to the strike call given. Following the bandh call, the Assam organizations have further declared to intensify its agitation by putting complete ban on vehicular movements towards the state of Arunachal Pradesh into the district of Lower Dibang Valley starting March 23 till the day of public hearing. The decision for the strike and vehicular blockade was taken in a meeting held on March 15 between All Idu Mishmi Students Union and the representatives from the organizations of Assam held in Chapakhowa. The representatives in the meeting have decided to target the NHPC vehicles and to prevent it from entering Arunachal. Besides Assam organizations, the Dibang Valley Students Union led by Anduwa Mihu has also given its clear stand on Dibang Project and reiterated its earlier stand of no dam. The DVSU supporting AIMSU and ICLS call for No Dam has also decided to call for bandh in the Dibang Valley district demanding cancellation of public hearing. The union said that the public hearing fixed few weeks before the parliamentary elections will influence the decision of the local affected people. The people during the election time will be influenced by their political affiliations and hence there will be no true opinion aired during the hearing.

The public hearing for the Dibang project have been so far cancelled for ninth time and besides repeatedly demanding for cancellation of public hearing, AIMSU and ICLS had written earlier to MoEF not to accept application for environmental clearance without the conduct of public hearing. It is evident that neither the govt of Arunachal Pradesh nor the organizations opposing the dams in Dibang basin will concede to their stand on Dibang Multipurpose Project. The community based organizations in Dibang have also called for declaring Dibang Valley as ‘Ecologically sensitive Zone’ which as per the provisions in the Environment Protect Act can put halt to all huge infrastructural projects. Having used all means and strategies in effectively preventing the public consultation process to complete, the ICLS along with AIMSU have come up with a 16 page report to make up a case in invoking the concerns that attracts the provisions under Section 3 sub section (2), clause (v) of the Environment Protection Act, 1986. The Act provides safeguards to ecologically sensitive fragile areas from industries, operations, processes and activities inimical to the conservation and protection of the environment of such areas. The provisions of the act have been used time to time in certain parts of country prohibiting operations of industries and processes.

In a separate statement, AIMSU General Secretary Tone Mickrow has demanded for a college in Roing. The union says that besides the anti dam movement in Dibang, it will also focus on demand for a college. The union puts it that a college is a development project that involves community participation and unlike dam it does not involve any risks. “College can be the best development project that the govt of Arunachal can give to people of Dibang”, said Mickrow. With AIMSU and ICLS demanding to stop the never ending circus of development, the protest in Dibang seems never ending.

Seems like yesterday when we observed ‘Myoko’ but I’ve to come out of stupor and believe that a year has passed by since we observed ‘Myoko’ and it is now turn of ‘Hiichi‘ belt to observe ‘Myoko’ this year and they would be officially declaring ‘Myoko’ open with ‘Sama Piniing’ tonight.

Well, wish you all a Happy Myoko from team Arunachal Diary.

So, what now? Being guest this year, we are planning to do a round to host villages to taste their ‘O‘-local rice beer, that they had so diligently prepared this past couple of weeks to welcome us, what else .

Here we come host villages, keep your ‘O‘ ready

For uninitiated, find about relevance of ‘Myoko’ here or you can go through a bit of mythology on ‘Myoko’ and a Photo-feature here.

One of the reader of Arunachal Diary asked me if I could throw some light on Vote-not-to vote rule or rather Negative/Neutral vote or ‘Nota’ (None of the above). As it would have been a long reply almost sufficing a single post, I thought of doing a post on itself.

Post 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, one lesser known rule of ‘The Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961′, has been doing round in blogosphere and social networking sites and has been a subject of debate. It is the Rule 49-O of ‘The Conduct of Election Rules, 1961′-the rule, which as a matter of fact I too was quite unaware of. It was triggered by hoax email that was doing round the web, apparently since past couple of years but which gained momentum post 26/11 Mumbai terror attack.

So what is Rule 49-O of The Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961?

It says that if elector decides not to record his vote, then the elector may do so by notifying the presiding officer and putting signature or thumb impression in Form 17A which exposes the identity of the elector and making them vulnerable to threat and intimidation. It also defeats the purpose of ‘secret ballot’.

49-O. Elector deciding not to vote.-If an elector, after his electoral roll number has been duly entered in the register of voters in Form-17A and has put his signature or thumb impression thereon as required under sub-rule (1) of rule 49L, decided not to record his vote, a remark to this effect shall be made against the said entry in Form 17A by the presiding officer and the signature or thumb impression of the elector shall be obtained against such remark.

What is so special about this rule that it became a buzzword and a subject of debate in the web?

The hoax email that did round the web, apparently seems to state that ‘if the number of people who invoke the right to 49-O is more than the winning candidates vote count, a re-poll is ordered with something amounting to a permanent ban on the previous candidature‘. Having disillusioned with the voting system of the country to elect their representative whereby there was no option other than to choose the candidate which was less unappealing than the others; this gave some sense of power to elector to accept or not-to- accept or to reject the candidates altogether by putting ‘Negative/Neutral’ Vote. It was felt and hoped that by exercising this option, the wronged system can atleast be corrected. And ever since, people have been debating about the viability of this option.

Can a re-poll be ordered by invoking Rule 49-O?

No, with the present Rule 49-O, there is no option that a re-poll could be ordered if the vote count invoking Rule 49-O is greater than the vote count of winning candidates. In other words, it would be much similar to abstaining from exercising your franchise or to make your vote invalid. 49-o.info has succinct information on Rule 49-O. Go through the explanation of rule 49-O here.

So, not until the rule is amended based on EC recommendations and a clause inserted for re-poll and disqualification of candidature, it would be futile and ‘waste’ of vote to invoke ‘Rule 49-O’ except to compromise your identity and expose you to the vulnerability of being intimidated.

Suggested readings:

1. SC keeps door open on negative voting.
2. Right of negative voting.

In an interesting development, Arunachal Anti-Corruption Sena has decided to join the fray for Lok Sabha seats along with INC, BJP, AC and Lok Bharti.

In a report appearing in ‘The Subansiri”-A weekly published from Ziro, it is reported that Arunachal Anti-Corruption Sena (AACS) has decided to field their President, Subu Kechi, a former government employee and lawyer by profession, to contest for Arunachal West Constituency as an independent candidate.

It is not clear from the report whether AACS has filed nomination for the same or not.

Watch this space for more updates on this.