Growing pitch for NRC
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: April 04, 2025 -

Pix - Chronicle News Service

FORMER chief minister N Biren Singh flagging concern over thousands of illegal immigrants finding permanent settlement in the state, students and civil society organisations insisting on conduct of the proposed delimitation exercise only after rectification of the 'flawed' 2001 census data, and almost all the political organisations active in the state batting for implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) prior to rejigging of the electoral constituencies sum up the general sentiment against the directive of the Supreme Court to conduct the delimitation exercise within three months.

With exception of the Kuki-Zo community, which hasn't commented on either the NRC or the delimitation issue, all other communities seem to be unanimous on updating the NRC, apparently due to realisation that the unnatural population growth rate of the Kuki-Zo people and sharp increase in the number of Kuki villages in the hill districts are fruition of the community-centric organisations and political figures covertly orchestrating influx from the neighbouring Myanmar since the last many decades.

In fact, such an apprehension has been corroborated by none other than the former CM Biren, who had been consistently reflecting on the illegal immigration issue, especially from the latter part of his first term in office.

Seemingly worried with the prospect of the central authorities going ahead with the delimitation exercise on the basis of the 2001 census data, N Biren in a social media post on Wednesday contended that thousands of refugees were facilitated settlement in the state since 1960s with the knowledge and consent of the authorities.

As the Congress party had helmed the state's affairs for maximum terms, it is obvious that his remarks intend to put the blame on the grand old party.

Along with raising posers on where the infiltrators are and whether those people were enrolled in the electoral roll, Biren cited official records to illustrate that even before Manipur became a full-fledged state, thousands of refugees were settled here with the knowledge of the authorities of that time.

As early as the late 1960s and early 70s, documents reveal the presence of over 1,500 families who had crossed over and were provided assistance for rehabilitation, Biren said in a post on his 'X' account, thereby underscoring the need for first detecting and deporting the 'refugees', before any changes are made to the existing electoral constituencies.

The former chief minister, who along with the centre has been accusing illegal immigrants from Myanmar of being largely responsible for the ethnic violence in the state which left more than 250 people dead since May 2023, also referred/uploaded a letter, which Paokai Haokip, the then Member of Parliament from Manipur, wrote to the erstwhile minister of state for home affairs, KC Pant, confirming presence of over 1500 refugee families who settled in Manipur by 1967 and acknowledging the centre's assistance for the non-natives.

With student bodies, civil organisations and political organisations, also agreeing that Manipur has substantial numbers of illegal immigrants, it is hoped that the central authorities would accord importance to proposals by various civil and political entities for conduct of the NRC rather than enforce the delimitation exercise taking advantage of the imposition of the President's Rule in the state, so as to avoid legitimising settlement of the refugees as well as possible backlash from the state's masses.