Imphal, July 1, 2020: A consultative meeting of about 14 tribal organizations has resolved to pursue the delimitation issue legally as well as by lobbying with the authorities concerned.
According to a statement of All Tribal Rights’ Protection Forum Manipur (ATRPFM), the meeting was organized on June 30 at RNBA Centre Church, Tarung in Imphal West. The 14 organizations different tribes of the eastern Indian state.
Former Members of Parliament BD Behring and Mani Charenamei and social worker Ramthing Hungyo spoke about delimitation issues as resource persons.
They said, carrying out a delimitation exercise is mandated under Article 82 of the Constitution of India.
This is not about tribe or non-tribe but it’s constitutionally mandated to carry out delimitation exercises after every census.
Under Article 82, the Parliament by law enacts a Delimitation Act after every census and constitutes a Delimitation Commission for demarcation of boundaries of the Parliamentary and State Assembly Constituencies.
The most recent delimitation of Constituencies has been done on the basis of 2001 census figures under the provisions of Delimitation Act, 2002, said the resource persons.
They further said that four northeastern stages 00 Manipur, Assam, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh — were left out from the most recent delimitation exercise because of various political and other reasons.
The federal Home Ministry and the Delimitation Commission of India are now processing to carry out the delimitation exercise for the four states, however the valley-based organizations and political parties strongly opposing it.
They have also filed a PIL in the High Court of Manipur.
A judgment given by the Gauhati High Court Imphal Branch in 2007 to stay the exercise of delimitation was invalidated by the Supreme Court, they added.
“The so called defect in the Census 2001 in some of the hill subdivisions have been rectified and final figures have been worked out, however, valley based organisations and political parties are claiming that there are abnormalities and defects in the Census 2001 which is baseless,” said the resource persons.
The leaders of the tribal organizations who participated in the meeting resolved to pursue the delimitation issue both legally and also by submitting memoranda and representations to the authorities concerned — President of India, Prime Minister, Chairperson, Delimitation Commission of India, Chief Election Commissioner of India.
It was further resolved by the participants more than 34 recognized tribes of Manipur shall be the signatories to the joint memoranda and representations and the ATRPFM is entrusted to pursue the matter.
“If the Delimitation exercise is not carried out as mandated by the Constitution, and the Constitutional rights of the tribal people is suppressed, the tribal people shall jointly explore the means to overcome the same including agitations,” it stated.
Source: e-pao.net and The Sangai Express