Manipur govt seeks action against Zomi Students' Federation for book on violence

Imphal, July 9 The Manipur government's Home Department has asked the Director General of Police to file an FIR against the Zomi Students' Federation Union for publishing a book titled "The Inevitable Split – Documents on State sponsored ethnic cleansing in Manipur, 2023", and take stern action against the publishers and to ban the book. 

The state's Home Commissioner T. Ranjit Singh in a "most urgent letter" to Director General of Police Rajiv Singh requested to take stern actions against the person/persons of the Zomi Students' Federation Union who published the book "The Inevitable Split - Documents on State sponsored ethnic cleansing in Manipur, 2023," and banning the book's further publication.

Referring to a complaint letter of an advocate Thokchom Punshiba Singh, the letter requested the DGP to take necessary action to register FIR against the accused author and organisation under the relevant IPC section(s), and also take appropriate steps to submit a detailed proposal to forfeit and issue necessary search warrants against the book under section 95 of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 by way of notification in Gazette at the earliest in the public interest.

The book, according to the media reports, speaks against the government and blames the administration for the violence that broke out in Manipur since May 3.

Various tribal organisations blamed Chief Minister N. Biren Singh for the violence and demanded his resignation and imposition of the President's rule in the state.

Along with the tribal organisations, ten tribal MLAs, including seven belonging to the ruling BJP have been demanding separate administration (equivalent to separate state) for the tribals, who mostly live in the hilly areas and the non-tribal Meitei community live in the valley areas.

The violence, which broke out after a tribal organisation held a rally on May 3 opposing recognition of Meitei communities as Scheduled Tribe, so far has claimed over 150 lives and injured around 600 people of different communities.