New Delhi
Former Ranchi Mayor and BJP national secretary and co-incharge of West Bengal Asha Lakra was on Saturday appointed as a member of the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST), which had been without a single member for the last fortnight.
The NCST, a constitutional body under Article 338, consists of a Chairperson, a Vice-Chairperson, and three other members. All are appointed by the President.
Lakra took to her X handle to express her gratitude to the President and the Prime Minister for giving her this opportunity. She said, she will try to live up to the expectations.
It was Chairperson Harsh Chouhan who first resigned in June 2023, eight months before the end of his term. The Government has not appointed his successor yet. The NCST Chairperson enjoys the rank of a Cabinet Minister.
Chouhan is said to have resigned over differences with the Environment Ministry over its amendments to the Forest Rights Act and the Rs. 72,000-crore mega project on the Great Nicobar Island. The Congress alleged he was forced to resign.
Sources close to Chouhan had told theindiantribal.com that among others his differences also owed to his assertiveness on issues like the Government showcasing NCST as one of the wings of the Tribal Affairs Ministry when the fact stands that it is a constitutional independent body.
On February 24, this year, the term of the acting Vice Chairperson, Ananta Nayak, also came to an end. Interestingly, Nayak led an NCST team to Sandeshkhali on the same day.
The three post of members have also been vacant. Lakra’s appointment is thus the first among the five. But being the co-incharge of West Bengal, a state crucial in the BJP’s scheme of things, whether she will join immediately or take some time remains to be seen.
