STDCM submits memorandom to Amit Shah
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, January 08 2023:
Scheduled Tribe Demand Committee of Manipur (STDCM) has submitted a representation/ memorandum to Union home minister Amit Shah, urging the central government to take up requisite steps for inclusion of Meitei/Meetei in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) List of the Indian Constitution, saying that it is genuine and legitimate aspiration of the community.
The memorandum was during the Union minister's state visit on January 6 .
In a statement, STDCM general secretary K Bhogendrajit informed that the Committee had sought for permission from the state's chief secretary on January 5 to grant a brief appointment with the Union Home Minister during his visit to the state of January 6 for submission of a representation.
However, as there was possibility of the appointment not being granted due to the tight schedule of the Union minister, the Committee submitted the representation through the chief secretary on January 5.The representation conveyed that the Committee had previously submitted a representation (No STDCM/GC/2018/1) to the Union minister through the chief secretary at the time of former's visit to Manipur on December 27, 2020.It continued that in spite of continuous peaceful democratic approaches, the state government has remained inconsiderate with regard to forwarding the recommendation along with the required documents to the central government for inclusion of the Meitei/Meetei in the ST List.
In this regard, the Committee iterated that the indigenous Meitei/Meitei is one of the principal tribes of North East India having its own distinctive language, culture and tradition.
This fact has been recorded in the successive Census and other records of British India Government.
The representation continued: "The Census of India 1891 records the Meitei/Meetei (also known as Kathe/Manipuri) of Manipur as a forest tribe, Census of Assam 1901 as main tribe of Manipur and Census of India 1931 as Hindu tribe but retaining their distinctive language and cultures; and the Imperial Gazetteer of India-Provincial Series- Eastern Bengal and Assam 1909 records the Meitei/Meetei as one of the Principal Tribes of North East India.
"Since the Census of India 1931 records the Meitei/Meetei as a tribe, it should have been included in the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order 1950 under Article 342(1) of the Constitution.
But the Meitei/Meetei has been indiscriminately left out from the ST List Article 342(1) for reasons best known to the Government.
"As a consequence, the indigenous Meitei/Meetei, mostly confined in the valley areas of Manipur, with no Constitutional safeguards, now faces serious existential threat in their ancestral land of Manipur.
A clear indication is that the Meitei/Meetei who once constituted 59 per cent of the total population of Manipur in 1951 has dropped down to 44 per cent in 2011.It is anybody's guess how long they will survive in the prevailing circumstances," the representation highlighted.
Contending that the Meitei/Meetei fulfil all the criteria to be constitutionally recognised as ST, the Committee urged the central government to prevail upon the state government to take necessary actions for inclusion of Meitei/Meetei in the ST List at the earliest.
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