Reported by Bit Irom
Imphal: Tribal leaders in Manipur have urged Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh to expedite the long-delayed Autonomous District Council (ADC) elections in the state, which have remained pending since 2020.
The demand was raised during a meeting between the Chief Minister and members of the All Hill Areas Ex-ADCs Association, along with MLA Awangbou Newmai at the Secretariat on Tuesday.
During the meeting, the association submitted a memorandum highlighting concerns relating to the ADCs and broader development issues affecting the hill areas.
The last elected Autonomous District Councils completed their five-year terms in May 2020, but elections to the local bodies have not been conducted since then.
The six ADCs are considered key grassroots institutions representing the hill districts and play an important role in participatory governance, welfare implementation and local economic development.
Following the meeting, the Chief Minister said the government would examine the concerns raised by the delegation.
“The Government will examine the proposals and concerns raised in the memorandum with utmost seriousness and will continue to work towards fulfilling the aspirations and developmental needs of the hill areas,” Singh said in a post on Facebook.
According to reports, the delay in holding the ADC elections has largely been attributed to the incomplete delimitation exercise for the hill districts and the continuing ethnic conflict in the state.
The Manipur government has stated on multiple occasions that the delimitation process for the ADC constituencies is still underway. The number of ADCs was increased from six to ten following an amendment, and the process of finalising constituency boundaries has taken considerable time.
Tribal civil society organisations and former ADC members have repeatedly argued that the prolonged delay in elections has adversely affected governance and development in the hill regions.
They have also raised objections to what they described as unconstitutional interference in hill area administration, including the induction of valley legislators into the Hill Areas Committee, which remains a contentious issue among tribal groups.