FORMER Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Wednesday said that thousands of refugees settled in the State since 1960s with the knowledge oftheauthoritiesandthosepeople were provided assistance for rehabilitation. Singh, who resigned as the Chief Ministerin February leading to imposition of President’s Rule in the restive State, also wondered what happened to thosefamiliesandwhetherthose people were added to the electoral roll. His comments, made in a lengthy post on X, came a day after BJP MLAs of Manipur sought a “review” of the 2001 Census and implementation of the NationalRegister ofCitizens (NRC)beforecarryingoutdelimitation exercise in the State. Singh, when he was the Chief Minister,andtheCentreaccused illegal immigrants from Myanmar of largely being responsible for the ethnic violenceinthestatewhichleftmore than 250 people dead since May 2023.

 

“Official records show that even before we became a fullfledged State, thousands of refugees were settled here with the knowledgeofthe authorities at the time. As early as the late 1960s and early 70s, documents revealthepresenceofover 1,500 families who had crossed over andwereprovidedassistancefor rehabilitation,” Singh saidinthe post. Manipur became a Union Territory on November 1, 1956, and was granted full statehood on January 21, 1972. Singhasked,“Whathappened tothose families? Howwerethey integrated? How many generations have grown since then?... Werethey eventually grantedfull rights?Were they added to electoralrolls?”These questions have never been fully addressed in the public domain and the issue has remained largely unspoken, even as the demographic structure of the State changed over the years, the BJP leader claimed. Paokai Haokip, then Member of Parliament from Manipur, wrotealettertoKCPant,Minister ofStateforHomeAffairs,informing him about the presence of over 1,500 refugee families who settledinManipurby1967,Singh said in the post, sharing a copy of the letter.

 

“His correspondence is just one among several that confirm how deeply rooted and longstanding this issue is,” the former Chief Minister said. Wondering whether Manipur was “a dumping ground for refugees from the very beginning”, Singh said it is important to ask whether there were legal mechanisms in place to ensure these individuals remained in refugee status. “Were they extended benefits meant for indigenous communities?

 

These are not small matters; they touch the core of our identity, our social balance, and the directionwe’re heading inas a society,” he said. Singh said it is time to revisit this chapter and not to assign blame, but to understand what happened, reflect on its implications, and chart a fair and balanced path forward, as the issue has far-reaching consequences and will shape the State’s present and future. “Frommyexperienceinactive politics and high office, I understand the weight it carries to a representative of the people. It’s easy to go with the tide, but true responsibility lies in standing firm on facts. We owe it to our people to be truthful, defend their dignity, and be forwardlooking. That’s what it means to be a statesman, not just a politician,” he said.