The World Meetei Council (WMC), Assam State Unit, and Hojai District Committee, in association with Apunba Meira Paibi Lup Brahmaputra Valley (AMPLBV), Assam Pradesh Manipuri Association (APMA) and United Manipuri Association Assam (UMAA) carried out a protest demonstration demanding ST Status in Assam on Sunday.
The protest was held at Nandapur Charali, Hojai District, Assam, urging the Chief Minister of Manipur, Nongthombam Biren Singh to send the latest Socio-economic and Ethnographic reports of Meetei, needed for ST, to the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India before the 2026 Delimitation process, stated a joint release.
It stated that the Meetei community living in Assam have been demanding for ST status to protect their identity much earlier than the Manipur Meeteis. It lamented that their demand is being kept in abeyance and pointed out that only the ST status can protect them.
It added the Meeteis in Assam can be included in the ST list only after the inclusion of Meeteis in Manipur in the said list. It reiterated its appeal to the Manipur Chief Minister to do the needful to ensure a safe future for the Meeteis of both Assam and Manipur.
