WMC shares thoughts
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, January 21 2022:
In response to the recent move of the State Government for inclusion of Manipuri language among the classical languages of the country, World Meetei Council has categorically stated that this move will be contradictory to the inclusion of Meetei in the ST list of India.
In a statement, WMC said that the Lokur Committee's criterion for specification of a community as ST is an antithesis to the premise of a classical language.
As such, the Meetei community has to choose either inclusion in ST list or in classical language list, as attaining both is impossible, the statement added.
The statement further said that the migrant population from Burma, Bangladesh and Nepal have greatly affected the demographic picture of Manipur in the last 3-4 decades and the native indigenous people - Meetei, Tangkhul, Mao, Maram, Paomei, Thangal, Kabui, Zeliangrong, etc had to bear the brunt.
However, all the indigenous people except the Meetei are protected by the provisions of ST and therefore only the Meetei are left in the lurch and they suffer the most, WMC asserted.
WMC also stressed on the fact that the Indian Constitution has divided the Meitei community into Scheduled Caste, OBC and general categories, calling it reprehensible and strongly demanded that there should be only one category-Scheduled Tribe, as the Meeteis are indigenous native people like the Tangkhuls, Maos etc.