Hasty delimitation will be disastrous : Thohrii

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Mar 29: Former Minister Mathibo Thohrii has warned that any hasty delimitation based on faulty census data would lead to complete marginalisation of all indigenous people of Manipur.
Talking with The Sangai Express on the issue of delimitation, former Minister M Thohrii who was elected to the Manipur Legislative Assembly from Mao AC three times said that all the valid arguments to put off the delimitation exercise must be placed before the relevant authorities before it is too late.
Welcoming the proposal for delimitation, M Thohrii however maintained that delimitation without first conducting a proper census exercise would be too hasty.
There is no correct or accurate census data on Manipur at the moment. If delimitation is done based on the existing incorrect census data, it will have serious impacts and far reaching consequences on the political configuration of Manipur, he said.
Pointing out that free movement of people is still not possible in Manipur, M Thohrii went on to ask how a proper census exercise could be carried out under the prevailing condition.
If the census data are collected from a single community and the same are published as official data, it will not be a correct census figure.  
The other communities left out of such census exercises will never accept the data, he said.
All the voters of each and every Assembly segment must be first identified and verified whether they are genuine citizens of the land, the former Minister said.  
It is a common knowledge that a large number of outsiders or illegal immigrants people have settled in Manipur over the decades, he said.
If delimitation is carried out by overlooking this fact, it will only breed unrest and turbulence in the State, M Thohrii warned.
He also underscored the need for all indigenous communities to confer on the issue of delimitation collectively. All the valid arguments against carrying out delimitation hastily based on faulty census data must be placed before the Government of India and the Supreme Court.
Noting that some people have been advocating 1951 as the base year for implementing the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Manipur while others have chosen 1961, M Thohrii said that people need to deliberate on the proposed base years and reach a consensus.
It is crucial to search and identify all the immigrants from Myanmar, Bangladesh and other countries who have settled in Manipur over the decades, he asserted.
If delimitation is done without identifying the immigrants, it will never do good to Manipur.
If the illegal immigrants are accepted as citizens and enlisted in the voters’ list, the indigenous people who have settled in Manipur for thousands of years will be marginalised and annihilated ultimately, he warned.
It is time for all the indigenous people to be extra sensitive and careful so as to avoid such a situation, he said.
Even if the Government of India’s intention is good, hasty delimitation based on faulty census data will create very serious problems. It is essential for the Government of India to understand  the pulse of Manipuri people and act accordingly, he asserted.
He then appealed to the Government of India not to do anything which may spark an unending crisis in Manipur in the midst of the existing turmoil.