Demand for inclusion of Meetei in the ST list is not just about quota

Lt Col Laishram Lokendra Singh (Retd) *

Saroi Khangba (propitiation of the evil spirits) at Keishampat on 21st February 2015 :: Pix - Shankar Khangembam

Manipur has been in a continuous state of conflict now for years. The focus has been on the policy of Government of India and counter insurgency measures taken up by the army and other central forces. The existence of internal conflict of territorial, ethnic and psychological divide has generally been ignored except for a sporadic outburst of anger by a beleaguered section of the society from time to time.

In the midst of this social turmoil demand for inclusion of Meetei in ST list of India has gathered momentum. A section of the perhaps less informed populace is projecting this demand as just about quotas. This could not be farther from the truth. There is a need to realise that there are a lot more serious issues beyond the parochial horizon of quotas.

The demand is about official recognition of the ethnic identity of Meetei. Who is a Meetei? What is his ethnic identity? Is he to be clubbed in the category of Mayang Aryans of mainland India? Or is he to be a part of the Indo-Mongoloid indigenous fraternity of the North-East? Meeteis no doubt self identify themselves as indigenous people, i.e. Yelhoumee in the lingua franca of Manipur. But is that the end of the story of establishing one’s ethnic identity?

UNDRIP (United Nations Declaration on Rights of Indigenous People) adopted in 2007 did not define who indigenous people are. There is no universally accepted definition of what makes a group indigenous. However, United Nations commonly accepted understanding of the term is that provided in the Jose R. Martinez Cobo’s Study on the Problem of Discrimination against Indigenous Populations in which self identification is one of the prime criteria. And Meetei self define himself as Yelhoumee which is in sync with United Nations understanding. The issue does not however end here.

Indian Constitution does not state who indigenous people of the country are. Nevertheless Supreme Court of India in a judgement dated January 5, 2011 opines Adivasi/Scheduled Tribe as the descendents of the original inhabitants/aborigines (Yelhoumee) of India. Therefore if Meeteis stake their ethnic identity claim to be Yelhoumee of Manipur; doesn’t it require the official stamp as Scheduled Tribe?

The demand is also about providing Constitutional safeguard to the 2000 odd square kilometres territorial land of Manipur called valley as Constitutionally protected area in the same manner as that of hill areas of the State.

The valley which is less than 10% of the total area of Manipur is an inseparable part of the hill region of the State requiring as much constitutional safeguard as that of the hills which will put a stop to the unending influx and occupation by migrants.

Further the demand is also about doing away with the Constitutional divide creating social chasm as tribal hill people and non-tribal valley people amongst indigenous communities of Manipur warranting different set of laws and administrative set up for the Constitutionally divided hill area and valley area.

The cry that “Chingmee tammee machin manao nee” hill dwellers and valley dwellers are brothers will continue to remain only lip service at political forums and academic discourses with each indigenous community pulling apart the social fabric of the State at the seams so long as the constitutional divide exists. Every rational thinking individual of Manipur will feel the need to bridge this gap.

Thus the crux of the demand is also about positing a cohesive and harmonious society based on ethnic social equality with equal respect for all indigenous communities (Mannaba Khunai) in Manipur. No doubt this is easier said than done. Nonetheless a step taken towards the right direction to do away with the external hindrances impeding this objective would mean half the task accomplished.

Meetei culture, tradition, folklore is intrinsically related with their ancestral land. There is a call for understanding that this land needs to be given Constitutional safeguard and preserved if Meeteis are to continue to live as an indigenous people of Manipur.

The issue here is of the very survival of an indigenous ethnic people called Meetei in its natural habitat called Manipur from the potential threat of going extinct or becoming minority in their own habitat.

This minuscule ten lakh odd community is less than 0.1% of the national population, if left on its own to fend for itself; it will be swallowed by the human sea of mainland India in not so distant a future. And to realise this collective vision one mission has been envisaged, i.e. to demand for inclusion of Meetei in the list of Scheduled Tribes of India.