Census was deferred in accordance with wishes of people: Manipur CM Y Khemchand Singh

Manipur Chief Minister Y Khemchand Singh on September 2 said the Centre deferred the Census exercise in the state after taking into account public concerns and the demand for an updated National Register of Citizens (NRC).

Speaking on the opening day of the eighth session of the current Manipur Assembly, Singh said the state government had repeatedly pressed for an NRC exercise to be completed before the Census.

According to the chief minister, the Assembly first adopted a resolution seeking an NRC in August 2022, when N Biren Singh was in office. A letter conveying the decision was subsequently sent to the Ministry of Home Affairs in 2023.

The demand was reiterated during the 2024 Assembly session, Singh said, with the resolution again forwarded to the Home Ministry.

After President's Rule was imposed and the present government took office, the state Home Department held a two-day seminar in August this year. Singh said the seminar concluded that the NRC should be conducted before the Census.

He said the developments, along with grievances raised by people in the state, were subsequently brought to the attention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other senior leaders.

"The Census was deferred in accordance with the wishes of the people," Singh told the Assembly.

Addressing questions over the absence of a formal order announcing the decision, Singh said both he and Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla had attended a meeting in New Delhi chaired by Shah where the decision was taken.

The Chief Minister's Secretariat had on August 31 announced that the Census exercise in Manipur had been deferred following a high-level review meeting chaired by Shah in New Delhi.

The decision came amid protests in the state demanding that the NRC be updated before the Census is conducted.