Marking illegal immigrants stressed
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, January 15 2026: The Arambai Tenggol has asserted that any meaningful and lasting solution to the Manipur crisis must begin with the identification of illegal immigrants, alongside ensuring the safety, dignity and Constitutional rights of the State's indigenous people.

The Arambai Tenggol submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 14, 2026 and it stressed the need for a context-sensitive and lawbased approach to the situation in Manipur.

The situation in Manipur needs to be understood in its correct and complete context.

Over the past few years, firm administrative steps taken to address long-standing concerns of illegal immigration and to safeguard the rights of indigenous communities have brought to light entrenched illegal practices, it said.

However, following the unfortunate violence of May 3, 2023, vested interests sought to exploit the situation and project it as a purely ethnic conflict, thereby diverting attention from the core issues that triggered the unrest, the AT wrote to the Prime Minister.

It said that similar challenges related to illegal immigration and the protection of indigenous rights have been faced by other States, including Assam and West Bengal.

In those instances, decisive administrative and legal measures were taken to identify illegal immigrants and protect indigenous populations, preventing the situation from spiralling into prolonged unrest.

These issues were not resolved through dialogue alone, but through firm and lawful action, it said.

Saying that the people of Manipur earnestly desire peace, harmony and reconciliation, the memorandum asserted that peace cannot be sustained if ground realities are overlooked.

The AT pointed out that illegal immigration poses serious challenges to demographic balance, land rights and the cultural survival of indigenous communities.

Any meaningful and lasting solution, therefore, must begin with the identification of illegal immigrants, the AT asserted.

Seeking clarity on the assumptions being made about Manipur, it said that it would be deeply disheartening if the genuine concerns of the people of Manipur are perceived as misplaced or unfounded.

Manipur's situation is complex and sensitive, and it deserves the same seriousness, consistency and fairness that have been applied in other parts of the country, it said.

The AT asserted a durable solution will emerge only when dialogue is firmly anchored in truth, law and equal treatment where reconciliation proceeds hand in hand with justice and where the identity, rights and future of Manipur's indigenous people are fully protected.

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