KANGPOKPI, September 4: The Coordinating Committee ATSUM today is ready to submit a memorandum to the State Governor regarding the passing of the three bills in the Manipur State Assembly tomorrow.
The memorandum signed by Maun Tombing and Joseph R. Hmar, convenor and co-convenor of the Coordinating Committee ATSUM said that the All Tribal Students`™ Union Manipur (ATSUM), representing all the tribals of Manipur in general and the tribal students community in particular draw your kind attention to the procedural lapses, unconstitutional processes and anti-tribal clauses contained in the Bills which was adopted by the Manipur Legislative Assembly while introducing and subsequent passing of the three Bills for immediate intervention and necessary action.
The memorandum says that the State Legislative Assembly has committed grave constitutional blunder `intentionally` while introducing and passing of the three Bills as it didn`™t follow the mandatory rules of procedures and conduct of business which says that all scheduled matters in so far as they relate to the hill areas shall be within the purview of the Hill Areas Committee.
It also further said that every Bill, other than a Money Bill, affecting wholly or partly the Hill Areas and Containing mainly provisions dealing with any of the scheduled matters shall, after introduction in the Assembly, be referred to the Hill Areas Committee for consideration and report to the Assembly) of the Manipur Legislative Assembly envisaged under Article 371 C of the Indian Constitution.
It can be noted here, that the above-mentioned Rules of Procedures and Conduct of Business had been clearly violated as the three Bills were neither referred to the Hill Area Committee (HAC) nor considered by the latter before introduction and passing of the said Bills it added.
The Coordinating Committee ATSUM also lamented that the three Bills particularly The Protection of Manipur Peoples Bill, 2015 and The Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (Seventh Amendment) Bill, 2015 contained highly objectionable clauses which are clinically designed to deprive and further marginalised the Tribal of their rights and traditional lands.
The Protection of Manipur People`™s Bill, 2015: Section 2 says `It shall extend to the whole of Manipur` means the entire geographical area including the Hills Area, it pointed out.
Therefore, the sentence should be changed to `It shall extend only to the four Valley districts of Manipur`, it demanded.
It further said that the bill includes controversial definition of the `Manipur People` and the undefined meaning of Native People, in the Bill under Section 2 Sub Clause (b) with reference to the base year i.e. The National Registry of citizens 1951, Census Report 1951 and Village Directory of 1951.
Based on this parameter, 80% of the villages in the Hill areas would be rendered unofficial and liable to be derecognized by the government, it said.
It is also to be noted here that Registration of Citizens and census Report in the Hills falls within overview of the HAC for consideration because the `Second Scheduled` of the Manipur Legislative Assembly HAC order 1972 which reads ` The Establishment of Village committee or Councils and other matter relating to village administration and abolition of villages and counting of the numbers of villages in the matter of payment of Hill House tax are made by the respective village headmen/Chiefs as per item No. 9 of the said scheduled matters, it continued.
In the statement of objects and reasons appeared in the third line of the The Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (7th Amendment) Bill, 2015, Bill No. 17 of 2015 five Hill Districts are mentioned which as a matter of fact is within the purview of the HAC.
Section 14B page 3 of the Bill which empowered the State Cabinet to approve purchased of any land in the State which is a complete disregard to the power and function of the HAC, which is the sole authority in matters pertaining to Hill Areas therefore, the cabinet has nothing to do with allotment of land, it claimed.
By virtue of Article 371C, the cabinet is incompetent to consider the matter without the consent and knowledge of the HAC in all matters relating to Hill Districts, it said.
The phrase `One of the Small hill state` appeared in the first line of the Objects and reasons is highly objectionable because Manipur is not a Hill State, it said.
It is a ploy to change Manipur to a Hill State so as to make the Meitei eligible to be included in the list of the Scheduled Tribes of India.
Section 14 A (1) `Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, Non-Manipur Persons, Firms, Institutions or any other similar entities who intend to purchase any Land in the state of Manipur`¦`¦..` is ambiguous as the terms (Firms, Institutions and other similar entities) does not clearly mentioned whether they (Firms, Institutions or other entities) belongs to Manipur People or Non-Manipur People the memorandum further added.
Moreover, the term `Any Land in the state of Manipur`™ in the same section implies that the Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms Act (MLR and LR Act) shall be extended in the Hill areas of Manipur.
Hence, It is in fact a sinister designed to grab the tribal traditional land in due course of time by way of legal interpretation and means.
Circumstances arising from the above facts and substantiation you are therefore, kindly requested to minutely study the matter and take appropriate steps so as not only to avert major constitutional crises and uphold the sanctity of the constitutional provisions but also to protect and safeguard the rights and traditional land of the tribals in Manipur as well the Coordinating Committee said in the lengthy memorandum.