Guwahati: The Manipur High Court has ordered that the Census exercise in the state remain suspended until April 30, 2027.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice M Sundar and Justice A Guneshwar Sharma passed the order on November 4 while hearing a public interest litigation filed by the Kangleipak Students’ Association and the International Peace and Social Advancement, along with a connected writ petition filed by Shanta Singh Nahakpam.

Referring to the notifications keeping the Census exercise in abeyance, the court directed that there should be no rollback or modification of the decision until April 30, 2027.

The order stated that the Census exercise in Manipur would remain on hold until that date. It further directed that even after the disposal of the representations, the Census process must remain suspended for another four weeks to allow aggrieved parties to approach the court.

The petitioners had raised concerns over conducting the Census amid the ethnic violence in Manipur and the resulting displacement of thousands of people.

They argued that accurate enumeration would require careful preparation, particularly regarding the updating of jurisdictional boundaries and administrative units. They also raised concerns over the accuracy of population records and the identification of people displaced by the conflict.

The Centre had deferred the Census operations in Manipur on August 31, a day before the exercise was scheduled to begin on September 1, following demands by Meitei and Naga organisations that the National Register of Citizens (NRC) be updated before the Census and delimitation exercises.

The decision followed a high-level review meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi.

A statement issued by the Manipur government at the time said the meeting had discussed demands to defer the Census until the implementation of the NRC and agreed to postpone the exercise, taking into account the concerns and aspirations of the people.

While Meitei and Naga organisations maintained their demand for the NRC to precede the Census, the Kuki-Zo Council opposed the demand, describing it as “premature and unjustified”, and welcomed the Census exercise.