The Garo Hills Autonomous District Council issued a notification barring non-tribals from contesting its elections. When a former MLA showed up at the DC's office to file his nomination anyway, he was assaulted. Two people died. A retired judge has six months to determine what caused this.
The Garo Hills Autonomous District Council — constitutionally established for tribal self-governance — issued a notification barring non-tribal candidates from contesting its polls. When former MLA S.G. Esmatur Mominin, a Bengali-speaking Muslim, arrived at the Deputy Commissioner's office in Tura to file his nomination as an independent candidate, he was assaulted outside the building. Violence spread to Chibinang; two people died on March 10. The state government responded by constituting a judicial commission headed by retired judge Justice T. Vaiphei, with instructions to submit findings within six months. The commission's mandate is to investigate the sequence of events that led from the notification to the violence. Meghalaya's government, which issued the notification, commissioned the probe, and will receive its conclusions in approximately autumn 2026, is not available to comment on the estimated timeline.