As tensions surrounding the controversial issue of the three bills passed by the Manipur State Assembly in August last year continue to grip the state, relations between the peoples of the hill and the valley are gradually becoming divisive.
The movement for implementation of the bills, which has been spearheaded by the Joint Committee on Inner Line Permit System (JCILPS), took another turn when its convener Khomdram Ratan was declared wanted by the Manipur police on June 3.
I have previously argued that the fundamental problem of the bills lies in its interpretation. The valley people, who are predominantly Meiteis, view the bills as a mechanism to protect the state and its people from outsiders.
On the other hand, the hill people (the Kukis and the Nagas) see the bills as a threat to their rights over identity and land. They fear that the bills would legally allow the valley people to encroach their land.
The hill people also fear that if the 2015 Manipur People bill becomes law and is implemented strictly, many of them could be excluded as the bill requires a person to have been enumerated in all three registers—the 1951 National Register of Citizens, the 1951 Census Report and the 1951 Village Directory.
Whatever the misconceptions and misperceptions are, one thing is clear that the Manipur government is making a faux pas on the issue.
The state government (dominated by the majority Meiteis) and the valley people argue that the bills are largely misunderstood and misinterpreted by the hill people. They claim that the bills would not disadvantageously affect the hill people.
But the irony is that the government has not taken the necessary measures to convince the tribal people, not even the Joint Action Committee Against Anti-Tribal Bills (JACAATB), which is spearheading the agitation.
The state government, chaired by Chief Minister Ibobi Singh, met an 18-member delegation from the JACAATB on Dec. 29 last year but did not follow up with any seriousness.
In the meeting, the JACAATB delegation requested the chief minister to convene a special session of the Manipur Legislative Assembly to review the concerns and apprehensions of the hill people.
Ibobi Singh then requested the delegation to give in writing about their concerns regarding the three bills that would potentially affect the interests of the hill people.
