Amara Bangali, an organization based in West Bengal, has filed a petition in the Supreme Court opposing the implementation of the Inner Line Permit System (ILPS) in Manipur.
Accepting the PIL, the apex court has directed the Manipur government to file an affidavit.
Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh has said that the government has made all preparations to meet the challenge of this organisation in the Supreme Court, The Hindu reported.
The ILPS has been in force in Mizoram, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. Outsiders planning to enter these States must obtain a permit specifying the number of days they can stay and they must leave after it expires.
On January 7, leaders of four students’ organizations, AMSU, MSF, KSA and SUK, staged a protest in Imphal city condemning the Amara Bangali, reportedly formed to protect the interests of Bengalis in the Northeast.
They also torched the effigy of its general secretary Bakul Chandra Roy and the police picked up some leaders.
Challamba, convener of the students’ wing of the Joint Committee of the ILPS, said that it was “very unfortunate” that the petition had been filed against the ILPS.
The committee would continue all forms of democratic agitations till the petition was withdrawn, he said and demanded the immediate and unconditional release of the arrested student leaders.