The Chandel Naga People’s Organisation (CNPO) unequivocally maintains that the National Register of Citizens (NRC) must precede the Census and Delimitation in Manipur.
Manipur is the ancestral homeland of indigenous communities whose identities, customary institutions, land rights and settlements have evolved through generations. Unchecked cross-border influx and unverified settlements threaten this established demographic balance and have serious implications for land, resources, representation and indigenous rights.
The CNPO therefore demands that the Government of India and the Government of Manipur:
1. Implement the NRC with 1951 as the base year to verify bona-fide citizens and identify undocumented entrants.
2. Defer the Census until the NRC is completed, ensuring an authentic population record.
3. Conduct Delimitation only after the NRC, preventing unverified demographic changes from distorting representation.
4. Review and de-recognise unauthorised settlements granted village status without fulfilling prescribed legal requirements.
Citizenship must first be verified, population then enumerated, and representation thereafter determined. A Census must reflect a verified demographic reality, not legitimise undocumented migration or unauthorised settlement.
The CNPO therefore stands firm:
NO NRC-NO CENSUS.NO VERIFIED CITIZENSHIP – NO DELIMITATION.
The Governments must act with responsibility and foresight to safeguard the identity, ancestral land, demographic integrity, customary rights and political voice of Manipur’s indigenous peoples.
Media Cell: CNPO
