Photo Courtesy: nenews
Imphal: Fourteen civil society groups from Manipur traveled to New Delhi to press the Union Home Ministry for an urgent National Register of Citizens overhaul. They met with Registrar General Mritunjay Kumar Narayan between July 5 and July 7. The groups want the register updated before the 2027 Census begins.
These organizations fear that conducting the census during widespread displacement will produce faulty data. They claim unchecked cross-border migration from Myanmar has distorted local demographics for decades. They worry that illegal migrants assume Indian identities to exploit the Scheduled Tribes Order of 1950. The groups maintain that the NRC revision should use the 1951 register as the base year.
The delegation warned that demographic shifts drive the state's security woes. They claimed that the ongoing conflict is linked to illegal immigration. They want the government to freeze constituency delimitation until the register is finalized. The memorandum states that "Manipur has experienced sustained cross-border migration from Myanmar for more than seven decades."
State lawmakers have already backed the request. The Manipur Assembly passed several resolutions urging the Centre to act. Former Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla received a formal plea for this update back in January 2023. These groups now demand a time-bound inquiry into population trends. They insist that local political representation must stay protected against further erosion.
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