Send the report as sought Delimitation at hand
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Manipur has never had it so bad in recent memory. No indications that the ongoing ethnic violence would be brought to an end anytime in the near future. All roads in Imphal in shambles that driving for even 100 metres without having to negotiate a pothole or two is unthinkable, save for the road stretch starting from the PWD point to the Airport. With people coming out in droves for Chakkouba shopping, moving from one point to the other at any point of time in the day in Imphal is a cumbersome task. Add the many mindless elements who do not hesitate to blow the horn even when one has to stop the vehicle as the Red light had come on at any traffic point or has to slow down due to the heavy traffic and the pathetic road stretch and the irritatingly comical side of life in Imphal should be clear to all. The only thing that is not funny is obviously the utter failure of the Government to address any of the pressing issues of the day. Even as Imphal and the rest of Manipur grapple with the day to day survival there is nothing to indicate that the Government has given any thought to some of the pressing issues of the people. As things stand right now and as report coming in from New Delhi has laid down, the Centre is set to conduct the much delayed Census exercise and get it finalised by 2026. Next in line is Delimitation. The question is, what happens after the Delimitation exercise is carried out ? No Census has been conducted in Manipur in the last two decades, thanks to what is termed as ‘abnormal population growth’ in some hill districts and one wonders whether the factors that went into play to complete the ‘abnormal population growth’ has been addressed or not. And it is on the basis of the number game that the distribution of Assembly seats would be worked out. What happens if the seats which are in the valley have to be adjusted to work out the increase in the number of seats in the hill areas, which will come under the ST reserved seats ? Just a question at the moment but a crucial question in the face of the growing demand that the National Register of Citizens be updated. Relate these demands to the voice raised against illegal infiltration and one is left wondering what the fate of the Meiteis would be if they are left to continue surviving in their own land without any Constitutional protection. Loss of Assembly seats, after Delimitation, would automatically see a hike in the seats reserved for the Scheduled Tribes with the Meiteis not allowed to contest elections in the reserved seats. Much like how some voters of Jiribam district, Thoubal district and Kakching district have the right to vote but not the right to contest in the Outer Parliamentary Constituency.
This is the reality and the demand that the ethnographic and socio-economic report of the Meiteis be sent to the Centre to consider the demand that the Meiteis be included in the ST list should be understood against the reality just mentioned. The stand that the report be sent has not come out of thin air for it was way back in 2013 that the Union Tribal Ministry had asked the State Government to send the same. A look around should be more than sufficient. The Kuki-Zos have raised their stand against the demand on the excuse that the Meiteis want to grab land in the hills, but never have they once given any thought to the land they occupy in the valley, particularly in Imphal. This has gone to the extent of even naming localities which identify with the tribe inhabiting it. The examples are galore. Constitutional protection. STs so they can settle at any place they like and in the process name the place to link it with their identity while Meiteis have been accused of wanting to grab what they call tribal lands. This is the reality and it is according to this reality that Imphal must act. There have been enough debates on how and why Meiteis fulfil the criteria to be included in the ST list of the Constitution and if anyone is under the impression that the Meiteis do not fit to be included in the said list, then why should there be any opposition to the directive of the High Court of Manipur to send the report to the Centre ?
This is the reality and the demand that the ethnographic and socio-economic report of the Meiteis be sent to the Centre to consider the demand that the Meiteis be included in the ST list should be understood against the reality just mentioned. The stand that the report be sent has not come out of thin air for it was way back in 2013 that the Union Tribal Ministry had asked the State Government to send the same. A look around should be more than sufficient. The Kuki-Zos have raised their stand against the demand on the excuse that the Meiteis want to grab land in the hills, but never have they once given any thought to the land they occupy in the valley, particularly in Imphal. This has gone to the extent of even naming localities which identify with the tribe inhabiting it. The examples are galore. Constitutional protection. STs so they can settle at any place they like and in the process name the place to link it with their identity while Meiteis have been accused of wanting to grab what they call tribal lands. This is the reality and it is according to this reality that Imphal must act. There have been enough debates on how and why Meiteis fulfil the criteria to be included in the ST list of the Constitution and if anyone is under the impression that the Meiteis do not fit to be included in the said list, then why should there be any opposition to the directive of the High Court of Manipur to send the report to the Centre ?