ST demand for safeguard of all communities: YKAL
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, September 02 2021:
The demand for inclusion of Meitei/Meetei in the Scheduled Tribes (ST) list of the Indian Constitution is not to break up Manipur or form a separate state for Meitei/Meetei only, Yelhoumee Kanba Apunba Lup (YKAL) said and asked ATSUM to understand that the ST Demand Committee and those supporting the committee decided to push forward the movement so that all indigenous communities of the state could enjoy similar status and live together in peace and harmony.
According to a statement of YKAL president Langam Angom, Meitei/Meetei has more than 2,000 years of written history and Manipur though small existed as an independent country in South East Asia ruled by 76 kings successively.
Accordingly, ATSUM should understand that people of both hills and valley of Manipur lived together under the leadership of Meitei kings before the British took over the administration in 1891 .
ATSUM along with other CSOs and organisations formed only by hill people should also keep in mind that the poison of hatred and division among hills and valley people was spewed when Manipur became part of India in 1947 and the caste system was enforced.
Though Meetei had long been marooned under bright things, both Meetei and hill people are now beginning to work together with the slogan 'hill and valley people are one', YKAL president said and appealed to all concerned to remember that Manipur cannot exist without hills and identity of Manipur would not complete without valley.
There has been report of gradual extinction of many small communities in different corners of the world and accordingly Meetei mount pressure on the government for having a constitutional safeguard for the community under Schedule 342 of Indian Constitution, the YKAL president said and urged ATSUM not to think of the demand otherwise.
It also appealed to the state government to prepare relevant documents for inclusion of Meitei/Meetei in the ST list and recommend the same to the government of India at the earliest rather than succumbing to the pressure tactics of ATSUM.