The Manipur High Court on 21 February ordered the deletion of a paragraph from a March 2023 order that urged the state to consider including the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) list– which had triggered violent clashes between Kukis and Meiteis across Manipur on 3 May last year. The court observed that the paragraph was in conflict with the stance of the constitutional bench of the Supreme Court.
The court in Thursday’s order cited an order by the Supreme Court which underlined the process for the inclusion and exclusion of tribes in the ST list. The order stated that the prerogative for inclusion and exclusion rests with the Central government and that courts cannot decide on such matters.
The single-judge bench of Justice Golmei Gaiphulshillu was hearing a review petition filed against para 17 (iii) of the decision dated March 27, 2023.
Last year’s directive was believed to be one of the reasons that led to ethnic unrest in the state, and conflict between the non-tribal Meitei community and the tribal Kuki-Zo community. The violent clashes in the state claimed over 200 lives and injured 1,500 people. As per reports, over 70,000 people from both communities were displaced.
In its earlier order on the subject, which was issued on 27 March last year, the high court had said that the state should consider the case for the inclusion of Meiteis in the ST list, preferably within four weeks.
However, in Thursday’s order, the court said that the previous order was against the SC’s ruling in the State of Maharashtra v. Milind & Ors case. “Accordingly, the direction given at Para No. 17(iii) needs to be deleted and is ordered accordingly for deletion,” the order read.
The order was rescinded by the justice during the hearing on Wednesday (Feb 21). The order of Wednesday said, “….the direction given at Para No. 17 (iii) needs to be deleted and is ordered accordingly for deletion of the Para No. 17 (iii) of the judgment and order dated 27.03.2023 passed in W.P.(C) No. 229 of 2023.”
Justice Gaiphulshillu’s order said: “The Meetei (Meitei) of Manipur has lost the identity of the tribe while merging with the Union of India on September 21, 1949, and earlier Manipur was a simple classless tribal society.”
“However, at the time of merging, 29 communities of Manipur have been included in the Scheduled Tribe list of Indian Union and thereafter, as per the order of May 26, 2003, of the Gauhati High Court’s Imphal bench, Chongthu, Khoibu, and Mate have been included in the list of Scheduled Tribes. Accordingly, now there are 34 numbers of tribal communities of Manipur included in the list of Scheduled Tribes of the Indian Constitution, but the Meetei (Meitei) tribe was left out,” it added.