'If Centre is determinted, it can solve any Manipur issue': Congress

Manipur Congress chief O Ibobi Singh on Thursday remarked if the Centre has commitment and determination, it can resolve any problem concerning the state, including the implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC), in two to three months.

Key points

• The organisations included Kabui Union, Rongmei Naga Youth Organisation Manipur and All Manipur Muslim Organisations Coordinating Committee (AMMOCOC).
• More than 260 individuals have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in violence between Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and adjoining hills-based Kukis since May 2023.'
• Kom Union Manipur president Serto Kom remarked, Ten members from different communities will consult the Centre and seek an understanding on matters related to NRC and Census.
• "We will try to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other key leaders to apprise them about the concerns of the people, " he remarked.
• Plenty of students staged a protest rally at Thangmeiband in Imphal to press for the demands of NRC implementation.

Representatives of a number of civil society organisations in Manipur left for New Delhi during the day to apprise Union ministers and BJP leaders of their demand for NRC updation before the conduct of Census 2027 in the state.

Singh, addressing the media, remarked, "If the central administration wants, the implementation of NRC in Manipur is not an matter. NRC should be updated first before Census is conducted. If required, the Constitution should be amended."

"Ours is a particularly small state. If the Union administration is determined and committed, be it NRC or any other problem, it is only a matter of two-three months to resolve it, " the former chief minister noted.

Meanwhile, the real matter is of the Centre's ignorance of the wishes of the residents of the state, he noted.

"How plenty of houses were destroyed during the ethnic conflict? How would you then carry out house-listing as part of the Census? How would you count the 60, 000 IDPs (internally displaced persons) residing in relief camps?" he remarked.

Meanwhile, representatives of 10 civil society organisations, including Naga and Meitei bodies, left for the national capital to press for their demand for NRC updation before the conduct of the Census in the state.

For context, the organisations included Kabui Union, Rongmei Naga Youth Organisation Manipur and All Manipur Muslim Organisations Coordinating Committee (AMMOCOC).

They would meet various Union ministers and BJP leaders, a member of the delegation remarked.

"We are going to the national capital to petition central leaders on the people's demand for NRC updation before the conduct of Census in the state, " AMMOCOC president S M Jalal remarked to journalists at Imphal Airport.

Kom Union Manipur president Serto Kom remarked, "Ten members from different communities will consult the Centre and seek an understanding on matters related to NRC and Census. NRC is a particularly serious problem that needs to be understood."

Meanwhile, plenty of students staged a protest rally at Thangmeiband in Imphal to press for the demands of NRC implementation.

They raised the "No NRC, No Census" slogan and additionally sought that the Census should not be conducted before IDPs return to their homes.

For now, ' If Centre is determinted, it can solve any Manipur issue' : Congress remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.