Ten months after four Khasi villagers were killed and 12 people were injured in a firing by Assam police, there has been little headway in the initiative to solve the problem.
The probe into the firing incident by the one-man judicial inquiry commission by retired judge of Gauhati High Court, Justice P.C. Phukan, is also progressing at a slow pace.
Meghalaya home minister H.D.R. Lyngdoh confirmed that the talks with Assam government would be delayed because of the Assembly elections.
A senior government official said since the poll results would be declared on May 13 and the Assam government would take another few weeks to form, talks on the boundary can be held only in June.
After the Langpih incident, a chief ministerial-level meeting was held on June 5 last year in Dispur to discuss the need to solve the boundary dispute.
It was decided that the matter should be entrusted to a committee of chief secretaries of both states to prepare the modalities for solving the matter and to hold talks so that they can come out with a concrete solution regarding the areas of differences on the Assam-Meghalaya boundary.
A 45-day deadline was set for the committee of chief secretaries to complete its task and submit the report to the government.
In October last year, the state cabinet decided to build a strong case to prove its claim on Langpih, with Assam asking for more documentary proof.
Besides Langpih, there are 11 areas of difference on the Assam-Meghalaya boundary which await a solution.
Though the requisite documentation in support of the claim in respect to areas of difference with Assam was ready at the end of last year, the Meghalaya government had not made any efforts to convene the chief secretary-level meeting.
Concerned over the delay in boundary talks, senior legislator from Hill State Peoples Democratic Party, H.S. Lyngdoh, said the government wants to adopt delaying tactics, as it was not serious about solving the dispute.
The party is supporting the present Congress-led Meghalaya United Alliance government.
“I have often taken up the matter with the chief minister and government officials to speed up the process of finding a solution to the boundary dispute, but nobody listens to me,” said Lyngdoh, who is from West Khasi Hills under which Langpih falls.