The KZC has also asked Home Minister Amit Shah to fast-track talks on its demand for a separate Union Territory with a legislature, saying a durable political settlement is needed to end Manipur’s prolonged conflict.
BY PC Bureau
The Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) has urged the Centre to conduct the Census in Manipur before considering any National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise, while seeking the reimposition of President’s Rule and faster negotiations on its demand for a separate Union Territory with a legislature.
In a six-page memorandum submitted to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday, the apex Kuki-Zo body questioned the Centre’s decision to defer the Census in the state and objected to demands for an NRC based on a 1951 baseline. The memorandum, dated September 7 and signed by KZC chairman Henlianthang Thanglet and secretary Thangzamang, was also sent to Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla.
The memorandum comes a week after the Centre deferred the house-listing phase of Census 2027 in Manipur following a high-level meeting chaired by Shah. The meeting considered demands from civil society organisations for an NRC to be undertaken before the Census. The Centre said the decision was taken after considering the “feelings and aspirations” of the people of Manipur.
READ: KZC_Memo_to_UHM_September2026
The KZC said it was concerned that the decision had been taken without representation from the Kuki-Zo community. It argued that a comprehensive and impartial Census was necessary to establish the state’s demographic position before any exercise relating to citizenship, delimitation or political representation.
The council also opposed the use of 1951 as the baseline for an NRC, arguing that records from that period are incomplete, particularly in remote hill areas. It maintained that an NRC is a national exercise governed by the Centre and cannot be driven by the demands of any particular community.
The KZC further pointed to the experience of Assam, where the NRC process excluded nearly 19 lakh people from the final list and remains subject to continuing legal and political controversy. It called for any future NRC exercise in Manipur to follow a legally sound and non-discriminatory process involving all three major communities.
KZC seeks equal accountability
Responding to demands by Naga legislators for action over the killing of six Naga civilians, the KZC said accountability for violence must apply equally to all communities.
The council alleged that more than 20 Kuki-Zo civilians had been killed and more than 15 Kuki-Zo villages burnt since the beginning of 2026 in attacks it attributed to Naga armed groups, including suspected NSCN (IM) and ZUF-linked elements. These allegations require independent investigation.
The KZC said its demand for justice was not selective and recalled its earlier expression of regret over the killing of six Naga civilians who were allegedly abducted in May. It argued that “killing civilians and burning villages” could not form the basis of reconciliation and called for impartial investigation into all cases of violence.
The latest political confrontation follows a move by Naga MLAs, including Deputy Chief Minister Losii Dikho, to seek central intervention over the killings and action against Kuki-Zo leaders. The KZC has accused the state government of failing to provide equal security to the community.
Seeks return of President’s Rule
The council also demanded the restoration of President’s Rule, saying the Kuki-Zo community had felt more secure during the period of direct central rule than under the present elected government.
President’s Rule was imposed in Manipur in February 2025 after N. Biren Singh resigned as chief minister and was revoked on February 4, 2026, when the BJP-led government headed by Yumnam Khemchand Singh assumed office.
The KZC claimed that more than 20 Kuki-Zo civilians had been killed since the new government took office and argued that the Centre had a constitutional responsibility to intervene if the state government was unable to protect all sections of the population.
The demand marks a shift from the KZC’s earlier position after the restoration of an elected government, when the organisation had hoped the change would bring greater security and normalcy. The council now says continuing violence and what it describes as political exclusion have undermined that expectation.
READ: Manipur: Kuki-Zo Bodies Condemn Violence, School Burning
READ: Manipur to Seek Centre’s Nod for NRC With 1951 Cut-off, Identifies 24,475 Illegal Immigrants
Push for Union Territory
The KZC also appealed to Shah to personally intervene and expedite ongoing political negotiations on its long-standing demand for a separate administration for the Kuki-Zo people in the form of a Union Territory with a legislature.
The demand has previously been articulated by Kuki-Zo groups as a constitutional arrangement aimed at providing political security and administrative autonomy to the community. The KZC has argued that the prolonged ethnic conflict has made a return to the earlier political arrangement increasingly difficult.
The council said a lasting settlement could not be achieved merely through security deployments or temporary administrative measures. It called for an early political solution addressing security, displacement, political representation and the future administrative status of Kuki-Zo-inhabited areas.
The memorandum effectively places five demands before the Centre: conduct the Census without further delay; reject attempts to make an NRC a precondition for the population count; ensure equal accountability for violence against all communities; restore President’s Rule if the state government fails to provide equal protection; and accelerate negotiations on a Union Territory with a legislature.
The Census dispute has added a new political dimension to Manipur’s prolonged conflict. Meitei and sections of the Naga community have pushed for an NRC before the Census, while the Kuki-Zo leadership insists that the population count must come first. With the Census exercise already deferred and the High Court scheduled to take up the matter again on October 12, the dispute over demographics, citizenship and political representation is likely to remain central to Manipur’s political crisis.
