Permission under the land laws of Manipur may help ILP

M Bimol Sharma *

ILP : Protest rally at Lamlai Bazar in July 2014 :: Pix - Deepak Oinam

Inner Line Permit system (ILP):

The "Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation of 1873" which was known as the Inner Line Regulation (ILR), was the first law promulgated in Assam for maintaining peace and governance on the Eastern Frontier of Bengal. ILR was an externalization of the policy of non-interference by the colonial rulers in areas outside the settled and administered districts of Assam. The tribes of the area were no match to the advanced people like the British. It was purely an administrative measure and not against foreign people.

The British policy was directed towards pacification and conciliation of the tribal people with the object to reconcile the frontier with Tibet and China. It was never enforced to curb the movement of the hill people across the Line. With the gradual extension of the British administration in the North East some sort of control was felt necessary to avoid frequent clashes which resulted from the unrestricted confrontations between the British and hill tribes and as such it was necessary to extend the regulations to other parts.

Manipur Context:

After the defeat of Manipur in the Anglo-Manipur War of 1891, the British established their indirect rule in Manipur. Manipur was not annexed to British India and remained a Native State. However, Manipur was not covered under the Inner Line Regulations. Instead, Manipur devised a separate system known as the "Permit" or "Passport" system. Indians other than Manipuris coming from other parts of India and settling in Manipur were called "Mayang" and treated them as foreigners. If the foreigners wished to visit Manipur, they had to take permission from the Darbar. They had to pay tax called the "Foreigner's Tax". The British did not encourage non-Manipuris to settle in the State. Even Gandhiji and, on another occasion, Rabindranath Tagor were not allowed to visit Manipur. At the time when the British Paramountcy was about to lapse on 15th August, 1947, there were divided opinions in Manipur on the issue of whether or not the "permit" or "passport" system for entry into Manipur should be retained.

The then King of Manipur and the then Manipur State Council endorsed the opinion that the permit system should be continued. On the other hand there were also people who objected to the continuation of the permit system. The then Manipur State Congress adopted a resolution on 4th October, 1947 stating that the passport system which applied to the Indians entering Manipur State is quite unsuitable to the then political situation and, therefore, recommended immediate lifting of the passport system. One year after the integration of Manipur into the Indian Union, "the permit system for the entry and exit from Manipur" was finally abolished under the Notification signed by the then Chief Commissioner of Manipur on 18th November, 1950.

Can this system be incorporated in the land laws of Manipur?

The Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms Act, 1960 (for short the 'Act') came into force from 1st June, 1961 vide order No. 140/1/60-M(vi), dated 31st May, 1961 of the then Chief Commissioner of Manipur extending to the whole of State of Manipur except the hill areas giving option to the Government to extend the whole Act or any part of any section to the hill areas. The act itself was passed by the Indian Parliament vide bill No. 95-F of 1959 being Act No. 33 of 1960. In the Act a special provision to safeguard the Schedule Tribes under section 158 is incorporated. The original section 158 runs as follows:

"158. No transfer of land by a person who is a member of the Schedule Tribes shall be valid unless -

(a) the transfer is to another member of the Schedule Tribes; or
(b) where the transfer is to a person who is not a member of any such tribe, it is made with the previous permission in writing of the deputy commission; or
(c) the transfer is by way of mortgage to a cooperative society.

After the creation of District Councils in the hill areas, the Act was amended to suit the creation of the District Councils and the following words were inserted in the original section 158 (b) as :-

"Provided that the Deputy Commissioner shall not give such permission unless he has first secured the consent thereto of the District Council within whose jurisdiction the land lies."

To obtain permission from the Deputy Commissioner become almost impossible after the said insertion because the consent of District Council mean vote in the Council. All these incorporation and amendments were done so that one day the provisions of the Act shall be extended to the hill areas with the intention that the land transfer from the Schedule Tribes to the non-Schedule Tribes should be an impossible task.

There was an Order of the Secretary, Manipur Administration, Secretariat Revenue Branch, Govt. of Manipur dated 20th June, 1959 issued under No. II/53/58/S/D-AS (R) which was published in the Extraordinary Gazette of Manipur on Saturday, June, 27, 1959 that:

"As a further measure to protect the interest of the classes of the people specified in this Administrative orders No. R/53/58 (2) dated this 31st October, 1959, 10th November, 1958 and 27th January, 1959 and in pursuance of Section 160 of the Assam Land and Revenue Regulation, 1886 (Regulation 1 of 1886), the Chief Commissioner, Manipur is pleased to direct that from the date of publication of this order in the Manipur Gazette, no transfer of any land in areas constituted as Tribal Blocks under this Administration orders Nos.R/53/58(3), dated 21st October, 1958, 10th November, 1958 and 27th January, 1959 shall be made by one person to another living in a different village without the prior approval in writing of the Deputy Commissioner."

The above provision was made under the Assam Land and Regulations. This Act was not extended in the hill areas. However, since the Assam land Regulations was repealed by Section 170 of the Manipur Land Revenue & Land Reforms, Act, 1960, the above order becomes obsolete and moreover it speaks only amongst the Tribal people from another village. The policy of the successive State Government and present Government is otherwise. The State Government so far is not considering to extend the Act in the hill areas, even the majority of hill tribes also do not like to extend the Act in the hill areas and the reason behind is/are best known to them. This intention is clearly known from the press statement of the then Hon'ble Chief Minister, Manipur Shri Rishang Keishing on 12-02-1997 and the same was published in the daily English Newspaper "Telegraph" published from Calcutta on 13-02-1997 in the Heading "Manipur in for foreign investment: Keishing that:

"Regarding the drafting of land laws for the five Hill districts, Mr, Keishing said and laws being framed as per the recommendations of the State Hill Areas Committee. Since the merger of the state with India in 1949, the Hill areas were not covered by any land laws. The Manipur Land Reforms and Land Revenue Act, 1960, which covered the three valley districts, exclude the Hill areas.

The Chief Minister said the new land laws would entitle the tribals to individual land ownership with proper pattas. The Act which was in force in the valley districts, would not be extended to the Hills, but a law more suited to tribal population would be formulated instead, he said."

On March, 13,1997 the local English newspaper "Free-Press" reported the statement by the then Hon'ble Chief Minister, Manipur, Shri Rishang Keishing on 12-03-1997 in the Assembly while replying to the discussion on supplementary budget for the year 1996-97 under the heading "CM proposes new land policy for hills" which reproduced as:

"A land law suited to the hill was needed. Therefore the government was considering to introduce a bill in this regard in the assembly, he announced in response to demand made by the opposition to amend the land laws so that ownership rights could be given to the inhabitants."

Though an option is given for extension in the hill areas, the State Government has no intention to extend the Act in the hill areas and no plans to frame a new land laws for the hill areas of Manipur. From the plain reading of the above section 158, it clearly shows that this section only meant for the hill areas because there is no "District Council" in the valley district where the Act is extended as stipulated in clause (b) of Section 158 and as such Section 158 is redundant or repugnant one because the Act is neither extended in the hill areas nor the State Government is ready to extend the same in the hill areas, rather the Government is searching all possible ways to frame a new land laws for the hill areas.

What is the wisdom of remaining/retaining Section 158 in the Act which creates many problems and misunderstandings amongst the general public of Manipur, even the intellectual circles and Government bureaucrats are in dark whether this Section 158 is applicable in the valley areas or in the hill areas. Since the Act, particularly section 158, is not extended in the hill areas, there is no bar on the part of non-Schedule Tribes to hold land or settle in the hill areas and purchasing from the Schedule Tribes nor any permission is required from the Deputy Commissioner in this regard as stipulated under Section 158 (b) of the Act. Since the State Government has no intention to extend the Act in the hill areas and to avoid further misunderstandings, it is better to delete the section 158 from the Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms Act, 1960 in the interest of all concerned by way of amendment in the Legislature.

If the State Govt. wants to retain it in the Act, it is better to amend the permission stipulated in the Section should be in respect of Non-Manipuris in the following manners so that it may help the present burning issues of I.L.P. (Inner Line Permit) system.

i) the words appearing as "who is a member of the Schedule Tribes" in the main section may be deleted;
(ii) the words appearing as "member of the Schedule Tribes" in clause (a) may be substituted by the word " Manipuri";
(iii) the words appearing as "member of any such tribe" in clause (b) may be substituted by the word "Manipuri";
(iii) in the proviso column, the words "or Municipality or Panchayat" may be inserted in between the words "District Council" and "within whose".

If it is amended as proposed above, it will come as followings:

"158. No transfer of land by a person shall be valid unless-
(a) the transfer is to another Manipuri; or
(b) where the transfer is to a person who is not a Manipuri, it is made with the previous permission in writing of the deputy commission; or
(c) the transfer is by way of mortgage to a cooperative society.

"Provided that the Deputy Commissioner shall not give such permission unless he has first secured the consent thereto of the District Council or Municipality or Panchayat within whose jurisdiction the land lies."

This incorporation by way of amendment in the Act is within the legislative competency of the State of Manipur.