SHILLONG, AUG 4: Traditional bodies from across the Khasi Hills have urged Meghalaya Governor CH Vijayashankar to withhold assent to the Khasi Hills Autonomous District (Regulation and Administration of Land) (Amendment) Bill, 2026, calling it an attempt to sideline the constitutional role of dorbar shnong, dorbar raid and dorbar hima in managing community land.
In a memorandum submitted on Tuesday, the Synjuk Ki Nongsynshar Shnong Ka Bri U Hynniew Trep along with Synjuk Ki Rangbah Kur Ka Bri U Hynniew Trep said the amendment passed by KHADC in June dilutes a key safeguard in the 2021 Land Act.
The Act presently requires the Executive Committee to fix any ceiling on settlement, allotment or demarcation of Raid Land only after prior consultation with the respective traditional institutions.
The Bill seeks to delete that consultation clause entirely.
The representatives argued that dorbar shnong, dorbar raid and dorbar hima have for generations served as custodians of Khasi customary law and community land administration.
Removing them from the decision-making process, they said, weakens institutions that are integral to governance under the Sixth Schedule and to democratic participation at the grassroots.
The concern was deliberated at a joint meeting convened in Shillong on July 7, where headmen, clan elders and civil society members unanimously resolved to oppose the amendment.
According to the memorandum, the change not only departs from the spirit of the Principal Act that codified Khasi land tenure, but also goes against the customary system itself.
The forum further contended that the amendment breaks the long-standing principle of cooperation between KHADC and traditional bodies on matters of custom and administration, and erodes the checks and balances essential to constructive democracy.
They also warned that bypassing the dorbars could make the land ceiling impossible to enforce at the village level, and that any policy affecting indigenous land must be framed only after meaningful consultation — something they said the Executive Committee failed to do.
The traditional institutions also raised strong objections to an Executive Committee notification issued on June 11, 2026, which fixed the ceiling on Raid Land. They said the order was issued without the consultation mandated under Section 16 of the 2021 Act, and that it empowers the EC to approve allotments beyond the ceiling, which directly contradicts the provision that any excess holding shall be illegal and void.
Describing the notification as arbitrary and confusing, they said its implementation would create serious problems on the ground.
While clarifying that they are not opposed to the idea of fixing a land ceiling in Raid areas, the bodies stressed that it must be done with prior consultation and through a clear, comprehensive notification.
In their appeal, the institutions requested the Governor to return the Amendment Bill, 2026 without assent, and to direct KHADC to withdraw the June 11 notification.
They expressed confidence that as the constitutional head and guardian of tribal rights, the Governor would ensure the protection of traditional institutions, customary governance, indigenous land rights, and Meghalaya’s matrilineal heritage.
 (Amendment) Bill, 2026, calling it an attempt to sideline the constitutional role of dorbar shnong, dorbar raid and dorbar hima in managing community land.){kind=link}