Manipur's JFD Demands 1951 Base Year in NRC Resolution, Urges Public Action

The Campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation (JFD) has demanded that 1951 be inserted as the base year in the resolution passed by the Manipur Legislative Assembly on September 2 regarding the National Register of Citizens (NRC). The demand comes after the Ministry of Home Affairs officially deferred the Census 2027 house-listing operations for Manipur following a high-level meeting in New Delhi on August 31. Registrar General of India Mritunjay Kumar Narayan issued a notification amending the January 2026 directive that had excluded Manipur from the immediate census exercise until further notice. Addressing a press conference at the Citizens’ Club in Soibam Leikai, Imphal, on Saturday, JFD convenor Jeetendra Ningomba said the Assembly’s recent resolution reaffirmed its 2022 and 2024 positions urging the Centre to update the NRC before the census but did not specify a baseline. “The NRC must be updated using 1951 as the base year, and this must be explicitly reflected in the Assembly’s resolution,” Ningomba stated. The JFD urged a high-level legislative team led by the Chief Minister and Home Minister to press the Centre for an official announcement on the 1951 base year within the month. The group also called on the state government to publish a white paper with a clear timeline for the NRC update. Ningomba also demanded the immediate reconstitution of the Manipur State Population Commission and the implementation of a comprehensive state population policy to address the state’s demographic imbalance. Before the Centre’s latest notification, the delay in issuing an official order after the August 31 meeting had led to debates between the treasury and opposition benches on the first day of the Assembly session. The JFD convenor appealed to the public to stage demonstrations on Sunday between 7 pm and 8 pm, raising slogans demanding the 1951 base year and the official deferment of the census. He also urged citizens to gather at the Citizens’ Club ground on September 7 to monitor the final day of the Assembly session. The JFD, its Task Force and community leaders will hold a joint meeting on Sunday evening to decide their next course of action based on the Assembly’s final resolutions.