Security deployed during the campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation’s (JFD) call, demanding the National Register of Citizens (NRC) updation before the Census 2027, in Imphal.
| Photo Credit: ANI
The Congress on Thursday (August 20, 2026) sought the postponement of the Census exercise in Manipur, citing continuing violence and the displacement of thousands of people.
Inner Manipur MP A. Bimol Akoijam of the Congress said conducting the exercise under the present circumstances would be an injustice to those affected by the conflict.
Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Mr. Akoijam said that nearly 60,000 people remained homeless since the violence in the State began on May 3, 2023, with many still living in relief camps. More than 10,000 houses had been destroyed and several villages devastated, he said.
The Congress clarified that it was seeking a postponement, not cancellation, of the Census exercise in the State until conditions became conducive.
“Accurate house listing of thousands of homeless people living in relief camps is practically impossible. To conduct the Census in these circumstances would be to compound the injustice and humiliation suffered by the people of Manipur,” Mr. Akoijam said, adding that he had raised the matter in Parliament under Rule 377 and written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Mr. Akoijam also sought the completion of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) process before the Census, citing concerns over illegal migration across the Myanmar border. He demanded Foreigners Tribunals in the State to identify non-citizens.
The Congress MP said questions over Manipur’s population figures, including those raised after the 2001 and 2011 Censuses, needed to be resolved before a fresh enumeration.
Published – August 20, 2026 10:54 pm IST
