House debates ST status demand by STDC
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, February 25 2014 : Stating that consensus of all concerned along with availability of material evidence would be helpful in restoring Scheduled Tribe status to the Meitei community, Deputy chief Minister Gaikhangam, who is also the Tribal Affairs and Hills Development Minister, affirmed that after addressing technical issues the matter would be discussed by the State Cabinet.

Responding to a call attention motion raised today by the Opposition leader Dr I ibohalbi of Trinamool Congress, Gaikhangam appreciating campaign by the ST Demand Committee for restoring ST status to the Meitei people said the issue merits detailed study on the technical aspects and unanimity of all the stakeholders.

Along with noting that Manipur remains a classless society and pointing out that at the time of State Reorganisation exercise in the 1953s people settled in the hills of Manipur citing socio-economic disparity endorsed recognition as Scheduled Tribes while there was no such proposal from any other community (valley people), the deputy CM described the ST demand by the Committee as an indication that those in the higher echelon of the society are willing to disown the status and remain in the lower rung of the societal ladder.

A pic of the State Legislature

Even though the Deputy CM's explanation that the matter is being accorded serious consideration and hasty recommendations on the same might not evoke positive response from the Central Government, Dr Ibohalbi disagreed with Gaikhangam's observation that the demand for ST status by the Meitei people tantamount to lowering their own status.

Earlier, moving the call attention motion to restore Scheduled Tribe (T) status for the Meitei community on the second day of the Manipur Legislative Assembly today, Dr Ibohalbi observed that in case there is no Government initiative future, especially survival of the Meitei people would be very bleak.

Highlighting that Meiteis were recognised as an indigenous group of people and enlisted as a Scheduled Tribe in the census report of 1901 when manipur was administered as a unit of Assam State, Dr Ibohalbi said consequent to change in the religious affiliation of the Meiteis the indigenous group was deleted from the ST category in 1950 .

Asserting that change in religious affiliation do not necessary mean there should be alteration in the status of the tribe/community concerned, the Oinam AC representative posed whether there should be further change in the status of the said community as a number of Meitei people have embraced other religions such as Christian and Buddhism.

Citing the example of the indigenous Tripuris having extinct from Tripura, their place of origin and not ruling out the same fate for the Meiteis in 100 years if necessary Meitei identity preservation mechanism is not adopted at the earliest by the Government, the MLA reasoned that inclusion of Meiteis in the ST category will neither amount to infringing on interest of other ST groups nor have any significant impact on the reservation policy.

With the Central Government having provision for 7.5 percent reservation policy for STs and 33 percent reservation earmarked for STs in the State under specific objectives for development of the STs there is more than enough rooms for every community to share the benefit, opined Dr Ibohalbi who further explained that even Assam comparatively a developed State in the NE region has ST reservation policy categorised as 'plain tribes'.

Moreover, a tribal State like Nagaland also has separate reservation provisions under the 'backward and advanced' tribe categories, maintained the Trinamool Congress legislator.

Stating that granting ST status to the Meiteis will have no bearing on Manipur's geographical area and would be helpful in addressing the raging issue of reintroducing inner line permit system in the State, he also claimed that reservation policy benefits meant for those living in the plain areas are being diverted to other communities/tribes.

The MLA also highlighted to the members about the Ministry of Tribal Affairs soliciting reports on Meitei Ethnographic and Socio-Economic Survey from the State's Tribal Affairs and Hills Department consequent to the Scheduled Tribe Demand Committee submitting a memorandum on the issue to the Prime Minister.