The delimitation and NRC issues in Manipur
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K Timothy Zimik (IRS, Retired)
Contd from previous issue
(e) Moreover, the migration of people from other areas to these hill sub-divisions are taking place
on account of better business and employment opportunities available in some areas.
(f) The Naga-Kuki conflict of 1992-1997 forced so many people to migrate to safer places of some hill stations on permanent basis. Similarly, the present Meitei-Kuki-Zo armed conflict will see people moving to the safer places on permanent basis.
DELIMITATION, ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS & NRC
As far as illegal immigrants included in the population census and false / fictitious entries in the census record are concerned, it is the duty and responsibility of the Governments of India and Manipur to identify such people and remove such entries from the census record. All the political parties and the Imphal valley-based CSOs have come out in public that the National Registry of Citizens (NRC) be carried out first and thereafter, the delimitation exercise be undertaken. There is nothing wrong in this assertion. The question is how serious these Imphal valley-based parties are on this NRC issue! A concerted effort is required to implement NRC in Manipur. Under the collective leadership of the United Naga Council (UNC), Nagas have taken a firm stand to implement NRC in Manipur immediately. However, the NRC exercise should not be linked with the delimitation exercise. Looking at the ground realities, it appears that the NRC is used more as a weapon to stop the delimitation exercise.
If we dive deeper into the NRC issue, then, we will see the real challenges facing us. There is the issue of treatment to be given to the illegal immigrants particularly who came from Myanmar to Manipur before 1951 and after 1951. Without going into the question of who brought them to Manipur in the first place and protected them, these illegal immigrants have been entering Manipur continuously for ages and have settled in Manipur - illegally and permanently. From the public and media discussions, it is seen that a view has emerged that those people who had entered Manipur prior to 1951 to be treated as ‘permanent residents’ of Manipur and those people who entered Manipur after 1951 (the base year) to be treated as illegal immigrants. Some parties and leaders are advocating 1961 to be the base year for this purpose.
It is the Government of India to decide whether to carry out NRC or not. The GOI has just the intention. Nothing more. Despite the opposition to the 2001 census for delimitation purpose in Manipur by the Imphal valley-based political parties and civil social organizations, court orders and the demand for NRC, the GOI has not taken any action in the last 22 years plus to identify those illegal immigrants and deport them. The point raised here is that the identification, imprisonment or deportation of illegal immigrants should be a continuous process under the existing laws such as the Foreigners Act, 1946, the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920 and the Citizenship Act, 1955 (amended many times). The illegal immigrants must be imprisoned or deported under the Foreigners Act, 1946, and the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920. This should have been done long ago.
According to Indian law, the illegal immigrants are not refugees, but illegal aliens. India is not signatory to the 1951 refugee UN Convention. India does not have a law to define a refugee. If a migrant or a foreigner is officially granted a refugee status, then such a person is to be considered as refugee in India. India grants refugee status on a case-by-case and ad-hoc basis.
The NRC exercise is to be in addition to the existing laws to stop illegal immigrants entering Manipur, identify such people and deport them. It is becoming very clear that the GOI is not in a position to undertake the NRC exercise in Manipur. This is the harsh reality facing Manipur whether one likes it or not. Considering the Manipur’s recurring ethnic armed conflicts, the complexity of the issues involved, India’s geo-politics of regional dominance involving the North-East India, Myanmar and its Chin state and Sagaing Region, ASEAN and China, there will be no NRC for many years to come in Manipur. As things stand, the argument put forward by the Imphal-based political parties and CSOs that the NRC be carried out first before the delimitation exercise is not wellfounded.
The NRC should be carried out in Manipur immediately without further delay whether the delimitation takes place or not. But the problem is that no genuine attempts have been made to implement the NRC in Manipur. The anger and the protests we see today are directed against the
impending delimitation exercise and not against the non-implementation of NRC. This is the tragedy.
For the indigenous people of Manipur, the NRC is a serious matter being connected with their land, their identity, their socio-economic and political rights, their culture and heritage and the protection of their people.
The Delimitation Act, 2002 is the law enacted by the Parliament to carry out delimitation in the entire country based on the published 2001 census. When the said 2001 census is accepted and used for all other purposes, but rejecting the same for the delimitation exercise is unfair. The parliamentary and assembly seats are frozen until 2026.The next delimitation exercise will be carried out on the basis of first census taken after the year 2026 i.e. the census 2031. The delimitation exercise carried out on the basis of 2001 census was completed in 2008 in other states, whereas the delimitation exercise caried out on the basis of 1971 census under the Delimitation Act, 1972 was completed in 1976. Such exercise took 4 to 6 years. The next delimitation exercise for the entire country is likely to be completed in the year 2036. This means that, if no delimitation exercise takes place on the basis of 2001 census in Manipur, the districts of Ukhrul, Senapati and Chandel will continue to be underrepresented for more than three decades.
The issue of whether the delimitation exercise based on 2001 census should be carried out or not in Manipur had been hotly contested before the Guwahati High Court and the Supreme Court of India. On 21-08-2014, the Apex Court dismissed all related cases upholding the Notification datedth February, 2008 deferring the process of delimitation for the states of Assam, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland. The latest case being the Writ Petition(s) (Civil) No(s). 357/2022 filed before the Supreme Court by the Delimitation Demand Committee. In its order dated 17-03-2025, the Supreme Court of India has directed the Centre that “ The earlier orders shall be complied with within a period of three months from today. Re-list in the week commencing 21-07-2025”. The Supreme Court of India will definitely take into account all the arguments and points put forward by the Union of India, the respondents and the petitioners and will pass the final order. The order of the Supreme Court will be binding on all the parties.
For the limited purpose of delimitation exercise, the population census figures published by the Census Authority alone are used to arrive at the above conclusions regardless of the outcome whether it favours one group or the other group.
CONCLUSION
The hill people of Manipur have been unjustly deprived of their legitimate right of equitable representation in the state legislative assembly, and therefore, the delimitation exercise of redrawing and re-adjustment of the legislative assembly constituencies of Manipur must be carried out judiciously on the basis of published census record so that the grievances of the hill people of being under-represented in the Manipur assembly are addressed to and the big divide between the Imphal valley and the hills of Manipur are bridged to a great extent. The writer is the former Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax. This Article was published in The Sangai Express in three parts on 20/02/2023, 21/02/2023 and 22/02/2023. This is the updated version. The views expressed are the Author’s personal views
Contd from previous issue
(e) Moreover, the migration of people from other areas to these hill sub-divisions are taking place
on account of better business and employment opportunities available in some areas.
(f) The Naga-Kuki conflict of 1992-1997 forced so many people to migrate to safer places of some hill stations on permanent basis. Similarly, the present Meitei-Kuki-Zo armed conflict will see people moving to the safer places on permanent basis.
DELIMITATION, ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS & NRC
As far as illegal immigrants included in the population census and false / fictitious entries in the census record are concerned, it is the duty and responsibility of the Governments of India and Manipur to identify such people and remove such entries from the census record. All the political parties and the Imphal valley-based CSOs have come out in public that the National Registry of Citizens (NRC) be carried out first and thereafter, the delimitation exercise be undertaken. There is nothing wrong in this assertion. The question is how serious these Imphal valley-based parties are on this NRC issue! A concerted effort is required to implement NRC in Manipur. Under the collective leadership of the United Naga Council (UNC), Nagas have taken a firm stand to implement NRC in Manipur immediately. However, the NRC exercise should not be linked with the delimitation exercise. Looking at the ground realities, it appears that the NRC is used more as a weapon to stop the delimitation exercise.
If we dive deeper into the NRC issue, then, we will see the real challenges facing us. There is the issue of treatment to be given to the illegal immigrants particularly who came from Myanmar to Manipur before 1951 and after 1951. Without going into the question of who brought them to Manipur in the first place and protected them, these illegal immigrants have been entering Manipur continuously for ages and have settled in Manipur - illegally and permanently. From the public and media discussions, it is seen that a view has emerged that those people who had entered Manipur prior to 1951 to be treated as ‘permanent residents’ of Manipur and those people who entered Manipur after 1951 (the base year) to be treated as illegal immigrants. Some parties and leaders are advocating 1961 to be the base year for this purpose.
It is the Government of India to decide whether to carry out NRC or not. The GOI has just the intention. Nothing more. Despite the opposition to the 2001 census for delimitation purpose in Manipur by the Imphal valley-based political parties and civil social organizations, court orders and the demand for NRC, the GOI has not taken any action in the last 22 years plus to identify those illegal immigrants and deport them. The point raised here is that the identification, imprisonment or deportation of illegal immigrants should be a continuous process under the existing laws such as the Foreigners Act, 1946, the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920 and the Citizenship Act, 1955 (amended many times). The illegal immigrants must be imprisoned or deported under the Foreigners Act, 1946, and the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920. This should have been done long ago.
According to Indian law, the illegal immigrants are not refugees, but illegal aliens. India is not signatory to the 1951 refugee UN Convention. India does not have a law to define a refugee. If a migrant or a foreigner is officially granted a refugee status, then such a person is to be considered as refugee in India. India grants refugee status on a case-by-case and ad-hoc basis.
The NRC exercise is to be in addition to the existing laws to stop illegal immigrants entering Manipur, identify such people and deport them. It is becoming very clear that the GOI is not in a position to undertake the NRC exercise in Manipur. This is the harsh reality facing Manipur whether one likes it or not. Considering the Manipur’s recurring ethnic armed conflicts, the complexity of the issues involved, India’s geo-politics of regional dominance involving the North-East India, Myanmar and its Chin state and Sagaing Region, ASEAN and China, there will be no NRC for many years to come in Manipur. As things stand, the argument put forward by the Imphal-based political parties and CSOs that the NRC be carried out first before the delimitation exercise is not wellfounded.
The NRC should be carried out in Manipur immediately without further delay whether the delimitation takes place or not. But the problem is that no genuine attempts have been made to implement the NRC in Manipur. The anger and the protests we see today are directed against the
impending delimitation exercise and not against the non-implementation of NRC. This is the tragedy.
For the indigenous people of Manipur, the NRC is a serious matter being connected with their land, their identity, their socio-economic and political rights, their culture and heritage and the protection of their people.
The Delimitation Act, 2002 is the law enacted by the Parliament to carry out delimitation in the entire country based on the published 2001 census. When the said 2001 census is accepted and used for all other purposes, but rejecting the same for the delimitation exercise is unfair. The parliamentary and assembly seats are frozen until 2026.The next delimitation exercise will be carried out on the basis of first census taken after the year 2026 i.e. the census 2031. The delimitation exercise carried out on the basis of 2001 census was completed in 2008 in other states, whereas the delimitation exercise caried out on the basis of 1971 census under the Delimitation Act, 1972 was completed in 1976. Such exercise took 4 to 6 years. The next delimitation exercise for the entire country is likely to be completed in the year 2036. This means that, if no delimitation exercise takes place on the basis of 2001 census in Manipur, the districts of Ukhrul, Senapati and Chandel will continue to be underrepresented for more than three decades.
The issue of whether the delimitation exercise based on 2001 census should be carried out or not in Manipur had been hotly contested before the Guwahati High Court and the Supreme Court of India. On 21-08-2014, the Apex Court dismissed all related cases upholding the Notification datedth February, 2008 deferring the process of delimitation for the states of Assam, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland. The latest case being the Writ Petition(s) (Civil) No(s). 357/2022 filed before the Supreme Court by the Delimitation Demand Committee. In its order dated 17-03-2025, the Supreme Court of India has directed the Centre that “ The earlier orders shall be complied with within a period of three months from today. Re-list in the week commencing 21-07-2025”. The Supreme Court of India will definitely take into account all the arguments and points put forward by the Union of India, the respondents and the petitioners and will pass the final order. The order of the Supreme Court will be binding on all the parties.
For the limited purpose of delimitation exercise, the population census figures published by the Census Authority alone are used to arrive at the above conclusions regardless of the outcome whether it favours one group or the other group.
CONCLUSION
The hill people of Manipur have been unjustly deprived of their legitimate right of equitable representation in the state legislative assembly, and therefore, the delimitation exercise of redrawing and re-adjustment of the legislative assembly constituencies of Manipur must be carried out judiciously on the basis of published census record so that the grievances of the hill people of being under-represented in the Manipur assembly are addressed to and the big divide between the Imphal valley and the hills of Manipur are bridged to a great extent. The writer is the former Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax. This Article was published in The Sangai Express in three parts on 20/02/2023, 21/02/2023 and 22/02/2023. This is the updated version. The views expressed are the Author’s personal views