Ngathingkhui Jagoi
More than 20 years ago, when the ex-District Council Chairmen put their heads together, they decided to oppose the Manipur Autonomous District Council (MADC) elections, maintaining that, the provisions of the 1971 Act, was ‘without power and separate budget for the hill people’. They came out with the demand for 6th schedule. After about 20 years, people demanded for election and Manipur state government has declared to conduct the MDC (not MADC) latest by next April. But this time round, after a little modification of the same Act with some sprinkled spices.. What the leaders of the hill people have apparently discarded earlier, Manipur government has come back with the same spiced stuff. And today, most of the aspiring tribal politicians took it as an opportunity in a life time.. The result is – there is already the council election fever in Manipur hills.
Elections to the Autonomous District Council constituted under the Manipur Hill Areas District Council Act, 1971 were first held in 1973 and the Councils were constituted on August 1, 1973. However, the councils were suspended and their administration was entrusted to the concerned district officials as on: Senapati ADC-17-10-1998, Sadar Hills ADC-17 -10-1988, Churachandpur ADC-20-12-1990, Ukhrul ADC -29-12-1990, Tamenglong ADC-20-12-1990 and Chandel ADC-18-03-1989.
Since then, elections were not held to the district councils on the expiry of the five year term of office, and the Hill Area Committee was set up under article 371(C) of the constitution on 20-12-1990 with a declaration that elections to the district councils should not be held until and unless the Provisions of the 6th Schedule are extended to the present district councils of Manipur. After a protracted consideration of the resolution of the Hill Areas Committee (which included all the 20 tribal MLAs), the state cabinet in its meeting held on 28-03-2001 decided that the state government had no objection to the extension of the provisions of the 6th Schedule to the tribal areas in the hill districts of Manipur with certain local adjustment and amendments. The state government thus constituted a Cabinet Sub-Committee/House Committee including three non-tribal MLAs namely – O Joy Singh, Radhabinod Koijam and Th Debendra Singh to go into the details of the matter. However, inclusion of the three non-tribal MLAs in the affairs of the hills irked the then Hill Areas chairman, Thangminlien Kipgen. He resigned and DD Thaisii took over as chairman.
Inclusion of the non-tribal MLAs was viewed as a scheme to hijack decision the hill people’s rights. Now the interesting feature in the new ‘Spiced Act’ which is rather controversial is - the ‘go-ahead’ consent to general candidates to contest in district council elections which is likely to be held after April 20 in phase wise, provided he/she has settled in the hills for the past 15 years.
The latest Manipur Gazette publication No.250 Dated October 21, 2009 the Govt. of Manipur says, ‘these rules may be called the Manipur (Hill Areas) District Council (Election of members) Rules 2009’. The word ‘Autonomy’ which used to be there in the 1st and 2nd and 3rd amendments of the Acts has been omitted or deleted. Another point to ponder about is – the limited time was given for raising any objection/suggestion (only 15 days whereas, normal procedure of inviting objection/suggestion should be minimum 30 days) after the notifications was issued on October 17, 2009. There were some belated complain from certain corners that deletion of the word ‘Autonomous’, amounts to ‘deprivation of the rights and power of self government’. But too late.
Now that all airs in regard to the district council elections have been cleared, Manipur chief secretary, DS Poonia has convened a meeting on February 18 to finalise security measures. Review of electoral rolls would be done before March 27. Meanwhile, the NSCN-IM leadership after a threadbare deliberation has observed the proposed MDC election as means to undermine on-going Indo-Naga peace process. If the buzz doing round are to be believed, the NSCN-IM is hell-bent to oppose the ‘big event’ which is basically considered as the strongest of all elections which even bring about division in the family and groupism in the society level at large. Another school of thought that comes into the debate opines that conducting the council election is just a ploy to undermine the process of the integration of Naga inhabited areas.
As of now, observers feel formation of district councils without ‘proper budget allocation’ and with little power is not viable at this stage comparing Karbis demand for a ‘Karbi Anglong state in within Assam state’. However, with the tribal MLAs sheltering under the roof of a divided house of hill areas silent over the notification of the proposed MDC election by raising any objection/suggestion and tribal people see only elections without the least botheration of the provisions of power and functions of MADC which is now MDC, and above all, the NSCN-IM opposed to holding of elections in its domain, one wonders what would be the fate of the 500 – 600 candidates who are likely to come out in the fray. Kill them
