Meitei/Meetei Tribe Union (MMTU) on Saturday alleged that the Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms Act (MLRLR) 1960 was the primary instigator behind the whole debacle which unfolded since May, 2023.
“Many well-read sections of the society had put forth several hypotheses analysing the cause of the conflict but we believe the real culprit is the divisive MLRLR act 1960”, the union stated.
Speaking to the media during the closing function of the four-day State Level Consultancy Programme at Keikol in Imphal, MMTU secretary administration Mutum Churamani stated that the act was a cancerous divisive act designed to create enmity among the people in Manipur.
“Manipur is around six percent valley and ninety four percent hills. The applied land laws for the hills and the valley are contradictory to the land distribution,” he said.
He expressed dissatisfaction over the concerned authorities for not enacting a uniform land law even when the figures call for rectification in the present land laws.
They have even failed to properly notify the people on what type of land laws are applied, he added.
He highlighted that Kenya was ranked number one among countries with the highest percentage of landless and homeless with 67 percent followed by Thailand and other countries.
“In Manipur, based on the 2011 Socio Economic Caste Census Report, around 71 percent of people in Manipur are landless and homeless,” he said.
He added that the figures would have increased by half due to the prevailing unrest.
He pointed out that the majority of the population in Manipur still did not possess proper proof of land ownership even though they had homes.
“During a recent survey by the union, we found that villagers residing in 40 different villages still did not possess proper land documents. All the villages have existed for more than 60 years,” he said.
He alleged that this was one of the impacts of the unfounded MLRLR act and questioned why indigenes had to live as refugees in their own land.
He appealed to the state government to allot legitimate land plots to displaced people by clearing their premium payments for the land.
“Allow the valley dwellers to settle in foothill areas similar to the hill people who can settle in any part of the hill areas,” he said.
The programme was jointly organised by MMTU, Manipur Gandhi Seva Ashram, Manipur Relief Works and Sustainable Livelihood.
