Imphal: Protests erupted in Imphal on Monday, increasing pressure on the Centre and the Manipur govt to implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in the state before before undertaking the census exercise.Under the banner of the Campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation (JFD), students of TG Higher Secondary School held a protest demonstration in front of their school in Imphal on Monday morning.Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the protest, JFD student wing spokesperson Daniel Yumlembam said the group’s position was that no census should be held until the NRC is implemented in Manipur. He said the protest was in response to the failure of both the state and central govts to act on their demand within the stipulated time.The JFD also launched a relay sit-in protest at Wangkhei Angom Leikai in Imphal East on Monday, demanding the updation of NRC before the conduct of the census.JFD organisation secretary Longjam Ratan said the census should be deferred until the NRC updation process is completed. He said the JFD had been pressing the demand for more than a year, but claimed that neither the state nor the Centre had taken any concrete steps to address it.With repeated appeals yielding no positive response, the organisation has now decided to intensify its agitation, beginning with a relay sit-in from Monday. The protest is scheduled to continue till Aug 16, with participants also holding overnight sit-ins at the protest venue, he said.Ratan said the agitation would later expand to include night-time Meira rallies and sit-ins at multiple locations across Manipur. The JFD’s student wing would also be tasked with mobilising students at educational institutions.On the possibility of talks with the govt, Ratan said the organisation would not compromise on its core demand of NRC updation before the census. “If we are invited through the proper channel with a clear agenda, we are ready to discuss the issue,” he said.Ratan said any decision to participate in talks would be taken only after consultations with all constituent organisations of the JFD.
