Exclusion and Insertion Dilemma
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: March 19, 2015 -
With many organizations in the Imphal valley rejecting the Manipur Regulation of Visitors, Tenants and Migrant Workers Bill 2015 (MRVT&MW) Bill 2015, the State is now facing yet another round of political uneasiness.
The assurance of the Chief Minister that any insertions could be made when it comes up for amendment once the Bill becomes operational as an Act has not been able douse the fire of distrust.
While the dismay wrought by the exclusion of the five-points suggested by the Joint Action Committee on Inner Line Permit System (JCILPS) can be gauged by the strident voices raised against the Bill by those who had been expecting the inclusion of certain points which had been made clear earlier.
Here, it is worth mentioning that that JCILPS had proposed inclusion of provisions/clauses which say that a pass or permit should be compulsorily issued to all non-indigenous people entering Manipur and no land ownership rights should be given to them and making 1951 as the cut-off base year for those who have already settled in the State.
The committee has also asked the Government to include a provision for establishing a full-fledged labour department for proper registration of migrant labour who are willing to visit Manipur besides deportation of those who violated the provisions of the bill.
Since the Government failed to concede to the demands made after the introduction of the Bill in the State Assembly, JCILPS members and its affiliates have reiterated that they would continue to stage different forms of agitations.
They have even asked the Chief Minister to resign if the Government is in no position to insert the five points emphasized by the committee.
The State Government now seems to be caught in a dilemma triggered by the fear of disapproval by New Delhi.
Whether the inclusion of the five-points in the bill infringed on the domain of the Union Government or it strengthens federal autonomy can still be debated.
However, as has been argued by JCILPS, the bill in its present form looks more like a protective shield for the migrants rather than act as a deterrent for unabated inflow of migrant and illegal immigration into a State already riddled with impoverishment due to numerous social, economic and political hiccups.
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