IMPHAL, August 27: BJP Manipur Pradesh has submitted a memorandum to the State government to take a resolution on the demand for restoration of Scheduled Tribe status for the Meiteis, Meitei pangals, Meitei Bamols and others, according to its president Th Chaoba.
Chaoba told media persons that the Centre had already asked the State government to submit its decision on the matter, which the State has failed to do so for the last three months.
He said the BJP Manipur Pradesh is ready to provide all assistance in pushing for the demand if the government takes a resolution on the demand in the State Assembly.
Once the demand gets a nod from the State Assembly and moved to the Centre for approval, the BJP Manipur Pradesh is ready with all assistance, he said.
Any objection to the process of restoration of ST status to the communities of Manipur would be a violation of the Indian Constitution, he continued.
He said authentic documents like the Census of India 1891 a general report, Census of Assam 1901 volume-I, Census of India 1931 volume-I, Imperial Gazette of India Provisional Series, Eastern Bengal and Assam 1909, Descriptive Ethnology of Bengal 1872, the India Census Ethnography 1901-1931 and the North and North-Eastern Frontier Tribe of India mentioned extensively about Manipuris as a tribe.
Since the matter is of great public importance, the BJP Manipur requests the State government to get a resolution of the Manipur Legislative Assembly on the issue, he said.