Government sets up tribunal for Meitei militant organizations of Manipur

The central government has constituted a tribunal to consider its decision to ban nine Meitei militant groups and their affiliated organizations for five years on November 28, 2023.

Formation of tribunal under the membership of Sanjay Kumar Medhi:

• The Union Home Ministry has constituted a tribunal under the membership of Gauhati High Court Justice Sanjay Kumar Medhi to consider the decision to ban Meitei militant groups and their affiliated organizations for five years.
• The tribunal will decide whether there are sufficient grounds to outlaw the Meitei militant organizations of Manipur as well as their factions, wings and front organisations.
• The Union Home Ministry had extended the ban on Meitei militant groups and their affiliates for anti-national activities and deadly attacks on security forces.

Proceedings under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967:

• In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of Section 5 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, the Central Government has constituted the 'Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Tribunal', the ministry said in a notification.
• The tribunal will decide whether there are sufficient grounds to outlaw the Meitei militant organizations of Manipur as well as their factions, wings and front organisations.

Ban imposed on many extremist groups of North-East:

• The main groups banned by the Home Ministry on November 13, 2023 are:
  • The political arm of the People's Liberation Army (PLA),
  • Revolutionary People's Front (RPF),
  • United National Liberation Front (UNLF) and its armed force 
  • Manipur People's Army (MPA),
  • People's Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK) and its armed forces,
  • Kangleipak Communist Party (KPC) and its armed force Red Army,
  • Kanglei Yaol Kanba Loup (UKL),
  • Coordination Committee (CORCOM) and 
  • Alliance for Socialist Unity Kangleipak (ASUK).

Ban extended on these extremist groups of North-East:

• PLA, UNLF, PREPAK, KCP, KYKL were banned by the Home Ministry under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 many years ago.
• In the new action, the ban imposed on them has been extended to five years. This is the latest development of other organizations being declared illegal.

UNLF signs peace agreement with government:

• The United National Liberation Front (UNLF) has signed a peace agreement with the Government of India in New Delhi on 29 November 2023 to establish lasting peace in the country's northeastern state Manipur.
• The UNLF has been one of the largest insurgent organizations in Manipur, so the UNLF signing a peace agreement with the government increases the chances of peace and development in Northeast India.

Kuki and Meitei communities of Manipur:

Meitei Community:

• Meitei is the largest community in Manipur. The Meiteis are dominant in the capital Imphal and are commonly referred to as Manipuri. According to the 2011 census, Meiteis constitute 64.6 percent of the state's population.
• However, despite this, they occupy only about 10 percent of Manipur's land. Most of the people of the Meitei community are Hindus. While the Nagas and Kukis are mainly Christians. According to the 2011 census, Hindus and Christians constitute about 41 percent of the population in Manipur.

Kuki Community:

• The Kuki tribe lives in the south-eastern part of Manipur and Mizoram states of India. Spread across India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, the Kukis are among several hill tribes.
• People of Kuki community are present in almost all the states of North East India except Arunachal Pradesh.
• The combined population of Naga and Kuki communities makes up approximately 40% of Manipur's total population. But they live on 90 percent of the land of Manipur. Both these communities live in the hilly areas of Manipur.