MMTU denounces eviction
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, September 09 2025: The Meetei (Meitei) Tribe Union (MMTU) has denounced the proposed eviction at Lei Ingkhol village in Chingmeirong as a "brutal and dictatorial scheme" .

A press release issued by Mutum Churamani Meetei, secretary administration, MMTU said that such a move will displace indigenous villagers and reduce them to the status of refugees and beggars.

MMTU also compared the scenario to the overnight destruction of Lidice village which was bombed by the Germans on the orders of Adolf Hitler in 1942 .

It further claimed that the proposed eviction is in contravention of the provisions provided under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (RFCTLARR) Act, 2013.MMTU said that Lei Ingkhol village has existed since the 1940s, inhabited by a socially ostracized community of TB and leprosy afflicted persons.

No land surveys were conducted in the village under the MLR & LR Act, 1960 neither by the Government of the day, nor by the subsequent administrations, MMTU alleged.

After overcoming extreme social stigma and building a proper community, the villagers are faced with an impending eviction for allegedly not having the necessary land documents.

Terming it a gross injustice, MMTU went on to poke holes in the proposed plan to relocate the villagers.

The proposed relocation site lacks proper roads, bridges, electricity, water and communication.

Each family is supposed to get an area/plot measuring 30x40 feet and there are no resettlement or rehabilitation plans for the villagers, claimed MMTU.

Operating in a dictatorial way, a seat of justice (High Court of Manipur) is violating "human laws" and seeks to displace innocent villagers to build parks, walking lanes for the elites, said MMTU.

Accusing the Government of failing to conduct eviction drives in the hill areas against illegal encroachers, MMTU questioned if indigenous Meiteis are being specially targeted.

Similarly, MMTU alleged that only Meitei village volunteers have been arrested for stepping up to defend the State and strongly condemned such "targeted" actions.

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