Manipur police foiled an attempt to forcibly establish ‘Paite Bazar’ at Khumujamba Leikai, Churachandpur district in Manipur on Saturday.
Khumujamba Leikai in Churachandpur district is a village where the Meiteis had been residing for the past many years before they were driven out during the conflict. The Meiteis in the Khumujamba Leikai were residing as a minority community in Churachandpur, a Kuki dominated district.
In the wake of last year’s May 3 incident, the entire houses belonging to the Meiteis in the village were set ablaze by the dominant community and Kuki militants, while the Meitei community residing in the village were chased out.
After the Meitei residents were all forced to run for their lives, the dominant community of Churachandpur district along with Kuki militants bulldozed all the empty houses and structures into the ground.
According to Manipur police, a report was received on Saturday evening that some market vendors had gathered at the Khumujamba area of Churachandpur district. A police team immediately rushed to the spot and cleared the area.
With the swift action of Manipur police, the area was vacated and 24 people were detained and released on PR bonds later. A state police team is stationed at Khumujamba to prevent any untoward incident. The police will secure the area from illegal activities and encroachment as per Supreme Court guidelines.
In the aftermath of the conflict in the state, the Manipur government took preventive measures to stop the alteration of the original names of places. The 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly unanimously passed, ‘The Manipur Names of Places Bill, 2024 (Bill no.4 of 2024)’ to safeguard the indigenous names of places from unauthorised alteration of names.
On October 8, 2023, the Manipur state government issued an order imposing a prohibition against any deliberate act of renaming districts, subdivisions, places, institutions and addresses of such institutions without the approval of the state government.
Meanwhile, the Khumujamba Meitei Leikai Patta-Dar (Land-owner) Association submitted a complaint to Chief Minister, N Biren Singh on April 17, 2023, drawing attention to the issues faced by the Meitei community in the area.
The complaint mentioned that the Zenhang Lamka Village Authority has claimed through media and written notices that any land owner under its jurisdiction is not allowed to buy, sell or mortgage without its consent. This caused distress and insecurity among the villages, it stated.
The Khumujamba Polling Station has been changed to Zenhang Lamka(J), which has caused confusion and inconvenience during elections, it said. When going to government offices to obtain documents such as Domicile, Birth, Death, Income Certificates etc, it has been made mandatory to bring a consent letter from the chief of Zenhang, it mentioned. This is causing unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles for the villagers, it added.
It further said that any household not paying hill house tax is removed from NREGS benefits. This policy is unfairly affecting the livelihoods of the villagers, it added.
Any type of development works from the government were made mandatory to be passed through Zenhang Chief. This is causing delays and hampering the development of the village, it added.
It mentioned that Khumujamba Meetei Leikai, one of the oldest Meitei Leikai of Churachandpur (1953-1965) has 200 households with a population of more than 1500. Regardless, they are facing neglect and discrimination from the authorities, it stated.
“We are not given the benefit of PMJAY as we are not included in the Socio Economic Caste Census 2011. This exclusion is depriving the villagers of much needed healthcare support. In conclusion, we urge you to take congnisance of our plight and take necessary steps to ensure that our village gets village Recognition Certificate and kindly give Khumujamba Meitei Leikai Patta-Dar Association the authority to provide residential certificate to our villagers. Also, provide the best amenities and services. We hope that you will address the issue at the earliest,” the complaint stated.
