PIL on IDPs forwarded to Supreme Court-appointed committee
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, November 05 2025: The High Court of Manipur has given a direction to forward a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking information and enhanced welfare measures for internally displaced persons (IDPs) to a Supreme Court-appointed committee that is already examining issues related to violence, relief, and rehabilitation in Manipur.

The PIL was filed by social activist Anthony Naulak.

A division bench of the High Court comprising Chief Justice M Sunita and Justice A Guneshwar Sharma heard the PIL on October 28 .

The PIL sought several directions from the High Court for the IDPs in Churachandpur district, including disclosure of the total number of relief camps, both operational and closed, demographic details of inmates, total funds sanctioned and utilized, and reasons for the closure of certain camps.

It also sought details of financial assistance provided to IDPs, including the Rs 1,000 one-time grant and Rs 80 per day assistance announced by the Government.

In addition, the petitioner requested the Court to direct authorities to increase daily assistance from rs 180 to Rs 100, provide five rounds of Rs 1,000 payments, ensure weekly medical camps, supply nutritious food including meat once a week, construct more toilets in the relief camps across all affected districts, and audit and publish fund utilization reports on the websites of the concerned district administrations.

The petitioner was represented by Advocate Siam Phaipi through video conferencing, while Advocate General Lenin Hijam, State Counsel Dimal Kumar, and Senior Panel Counsel for the Centre W Darakeshwar Singh appeared for the respondents.

Notably, the three-member Supreme Court appointed committee comprises Justice Gita Mittal, former Chief Justice of Jammu & Kashmir High Court; Justice Shalini Phansalkar Joshi, former Judge, Bombay High Court; and Justice Asha Menon, former Judge, Delhi High Court.

The committee was constituted by the Supreme Court under its order dated August 7, 2023, in the Gangmei case to oversee relief and rehabilitation efforts in the State.

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