Imphal: The Scheduled Tribe Demand Committee, Manipur (STDCM) renewed its demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status for the Meitei community during an observance of the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples at the Youth Hostel in Khuman Lampak Sports Complex, Imphal, on Sunday.
The programme, held under the theme “The Fate of Indigenous Meitei/Meetei Tribe of Manipur,” brought together civil society representatives, academics and retired government officials to discuss the community’s demand for constitutional recognition.
The STDCM argued that the Meitei community, which constitutes around 53 per cent of Manipur’s population and is predominantly based in the Imphal Valley, has a recorded history stretching back more than 2,000 years. The committee maintained that despite its historical and indigenous roots, the Meitei community remains outside the Scheduled Tribe list.
Addressing the gathering, STDCM General Secretary K. Bhogendrajit claimed that the Meiteis had a recognised tribal identity before Manipur’s merger with the Indian Union in 1949, but subsequently lost that status.
Bhogendrajit said the Meiteis are the only indigenous community in Manipur that has not been accorded ST status. He argued that constitutional safeguards were necessary to protect the community’s ancestral land, language and cultural identity.
According to the STDCM, the demand for ST status is not simply an issue of administrative classification but is linked to the protection of the community’s traditional land and cultural heritage amid growing social and economic pressures.
The event also took place amid Manipur’s continuing security and humanitarian challenges. STDCM leaders stressed that restoring peace and normalcy should remain the immediate priority for the state.
At the same time, they maintained that the demand for constitutional recognition would continue through peaceful and democratic means.
STDCM Chief Patron Moirangthem Naodalenkhomba, Working President Lt. Col. Lokendra, Advisor and retired Professor Huidrom Jayantakumar, retired Professor Dr Thounaojam Ratankumar, retired RIMS Medical Superintendent Dr Yanglem Mohen, and Manipur University Law Department Assistant Professor Dr Sapam Dilip were among those who attended the programme.
The committee reiterated that its demand for ST status remains a constitutional and democratic issue, keeping the question of the Meitei community’s status in Manipur’s wider debate over indigenous rights and constitutional safeguards.