AMUCO calls for collective resolve on delimitation
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, March 23 2025: Taking serious note of the Supreme Court's directive issued on March 18, 2025 to complete the process of delimitation in Manipur, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam within three months, the All Manipur United Clubs' Organisation (AMUCO) has called upon the people of Manipur to adopt a collective resolution that any delimitation should be based on genuine or correct census records otherwise it is irrational and illegitimate.

A statement issued by AMUCO has also appealed to all the communities to adopt a common stance that all delimitation processes should be based on correct/genuine records, data and documents so that the delimitation process does not create any misunderstanding among the communities.

It further appealed to all the communities not to share any provocative posts or statements on social media which may hurt the sentiments of other communities in connection with the issue of delimitation.

It is a resolute stand of the AMUCO that any delimitation exercise in Manipur may be initiated only after the faulty census data are rectified and correct census records are published after all illegal immigrants are identified through comprehensive implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) .

AMUCO also called upon all the people to raise a collective voice that no delimitation exercise should be initiated in Manipur until and unless the faulty census records are rectified.

Any protest or objection raised after the Delimitation Commission of India has redrawn the boundaries of the Parliamentary and Assembly seats of Manipur will not have any impact.

"As such, we need to point out all the valid reasons for keeping the delimitation process at bay and work collectively to see that the commission does not initiate any delimitation exercise in the State", AMUCO said.

For Manipur, the census records of both 2001 and 2011 are incomplete and fraught with gross errors.

The 2011 census recorded abnormal and unrealistic growth of population at some places as if a woman gave birth to three/four children in a year, AMUCO pointed out.

As it is crystal clear that the census exercise was heavily manipulated, there is no valid ground for initiating any delimitation exercise in Manipur.

Highlighting the faulty census records and the need for an NRC, the Government of India must submit a reply to the Supreme Court categorically stating that there is no correct census data to carry out delimitation exercise in Manipur and any attempt to carry out delimitation in the State at the moment will only invite widespread protests, it said.

Delimitation is basically about uniform representation of people in the Parliament and the State Assembly.

But there will be no uniformity if delimitation is done based on the existing census records, it asserted.

If delimitation is carried out based on the existing faulty census records, new Constituencies may emerge which have people only on paper but little or no voters in reality.

It will only serve as a convenient means of grabbing political power for the people/community inhabiting the newly created constituencies, it continued.

It was with this ulterior motive of grabbing political power that the census exercise was manipulated left and right, AMUCO asserted.

Government officials who carried out the census exercise could not collect correct data for they were threatened, intimidated and influenced by armed persons, it said.

If any delimitation is done in Manipur before rectifying the faulty census records and illegal immigrants are identified, it will have devastating impacts on all the indigenous people and it will open a dark chapter in the history of Manipur, it added.

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