Manipur strife: SC extends tenure of judges’ panel by 6 months
Ethnic clashes between the tribal Kukis and dominant Meiteis first erupted on May 3 during a protest against a court-ordered tweak to the state’s reservation matrix, granting Scheduled Tribe status to the latter.
The Supreme Court on Monday extended by six months the tenure of a high-powered committee of retired judges it had constituted to evaluate the effectiveness of relief and rehabilitation efforts in Manipur in the wake of persistent ethnic violence in the northeastern state since May 2023.
A bench, led by Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, issued a brief order extending the tenure of the panel that expired on July 15.
Senior counsel Vibha Makhija, who had been appointed as the amicus to represent the committee, mentioned the matter before the bench, also comprising justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra. She submitted that an extension is necessary for the committee to continue its monitoring of humanitarian efforts in the violence-hit state.
Agreeing with her, the bench passed the order: “The tenure of the committee, chaired by justice Gita Mittal shall be extended by six months.”
Set up in August 2023, the all-women committee of three former high court judges, namely justices Mittal (former chief justice of the Jammu & Kashmir high court), Shalini P Joshi (former Bombay high court judge) and Asha Menon (former Delhi high court judge), have been tasked with enquiring into the nature of violence against women and ensuring physical and psychological well-being of those housed in the relief camps, besides the payment of damages to the victims.
The panel has so submitted a number of pivotal reports on a range of issues, including essential supplies in the relief camps, medical assistance for the displaced people, restoration of religious places, dignified disposal of bodies and disbursal of compensation.
Ethnic clashes between the tribal Kukis and dominant Meiteis first erupted on May 3 during a protest against a court-ordered tweak to the state’s reservation matrix, granting Scheduled Tribe status to the latter. The violence quickly engulfed the state where ethnic fault lines run deep, displacing tens of thousands of people who fled burning homes and neighbourhoods into jungles, often across state borders. At least 170 people have been killed in the violence.