Meiteis as Tribal

By Lt Col Laishram Lokendra Singh (Retd)

Imphal, August 7, 2013 [The Sangai Express]--- Armed with the knowledge and confidence that you Meitei are Hindu non- tribal as per what you have been taught to believe in Manipur, go to Hyderabad, Bangalore or for that matter Delhi and there you suddenly suffer the indignity of being referred to and treated as dog eating tribal of Manipur. You are taken aback and painfully try to explain that you are a chaste high class Hindu and your Gotra is Madhukallya or something like that and as per the Indian Constitution you are a general cadre Hindu supposedly at par with other Indians. With a total disbelief the other guy says, "Oh! You are not a tribal?" To how many Indians and for how long can you keep explaining that you are not a tribal when every mainland Indian takes it for granted that you are a tribal?

Fortunate are those Meiteis who have not left their habitat Manipur and exist with a blissfully ignorant feeling that they are no longer tribal when the world around them thinks otherwise. Manorama Year Book 2013 on page 605 while giving out list of tribals in India clearly mentions Meitei as a tribal of Manipur. In fact they are only calling a spade a spade.

June 2005, I had gone with my son and daughter to Safdarjung Enclave in New Delhi to look for a room on rent for the ensuing academic year. A property dealer had taken us to a particular house and the land lady looked at us from head to toe and said, "koi dhang ka admi nahi la sakta? " The three of us didn't utter a word and left the place quietly. I was sure in my mind that even if the land lady magnanimously gave a room for my children to stay on rent they would be racially discriminated by her and her family because of our Mangoloid features and looks synonymous with tribal of North East.

When a tribal is called a tribal there is no question of suffering any indignity. It is when somebody who believes is not a tribal and then he is bracketed within the ambit of tribal, that's when he feels painfully hurt. In this regard, it would be of extreme interest to know how the Meitei MP from Inner Parliamentary Constituency of Manipur is perceived and treated by his colleagues of mainland India. Going by the fact that he was a member of the team to submit a memorandum to PM Manmohan Singh demanding Scheduled Tribe status for Meiteis, perhaps he has also gone through the indignity of being perceived as a tribal by his Indian colleagues.

Anthropologically and historically Meiteis who are indigenous early settlers of Manipur were tribals and still continue to practice tribal mores. Historically, TC Hodson in his book The Meitheis (1908) on page 8 says among others that on the occasion of the King ascending the throne (coronation) the Raja and Rani wore tribal dress. Today even after 3 centuries of having imbibed values of Hinduism and following some of their ways of worship yet Meiteis have largely not given up their animism tribal culture. As per tradition Meiteis build their house facing east and keep their house deity Sanamahi in the south western corner of the house. 

Even Bamon (Brahmin) do the same and no Hindu god is worshipped inside the house itself. Then there is the ancestral clan deity with different names such as "Yumjao Lairembi" in all localities adorned with an additional tribal ensemble perhaps symbolizing tribal roots. Sanamahi temple located at 1st MR premises is officially maintained under the State temple board. At Kangla the heart of Imphal after the Assam Rifles moved out "Pakhangba Temple" has been officially constructed and rituals are being carried out from time to time.

During the lunar month of Lamta (roughly corresponding to March), on Saturdays elderly women folk carry out Saroikhangba at road intersections where offerings are made to appease spirits to keep them away during the ensuing year. Again on Sajibu Nongma Panba, first day of Lunar month of Sajibu (roughly corresponding to April) New Year offerings are made to the house deity Sanamahi and Leimarel and cooked food is offered outside the gate to Lamaba Tumaba spirits. When a child is born the placenta is buried at home on the eastern/southern side of the house and on the 6th day Epan Thaba ritual is carried out before observing Swasti Puja. 

During marriage it is essential that Heijingpot ceremony is held prior to the actual conduct of the marriage itself wherein groom's party brings fruits along with eatables to the bride's residence and had together to formalize the agreement invoking God as witness to fix the marriage. On the day of the marriage offerings are first made to Sanamahi and clan/locality deity before commencement of the marriage. The bridegroom is received and welcomed by showering parched rice on a makeshift fire at the entrance of the bride's place. 

Again during the conduct of Shradh ritual on the 13th day after death or while observing death anniversary, offerings are first made to house deity Sanamahi before the ritual commences. During Holi celebration boys and girls do Thabal Chongba - dance collectively, and this carries on for days after Holi is over. Religious festival Laiharaoba or merry making with god is another tribal ritual in which the enactment of a particular tribal folk lore in tribal dress is an essential part of the ritual. These are just a few of the tribal customs/mores Meiteis still follow till date. This culture has a personality of its own, which pervades every aspect of life.

When mainland Indians, therefore, call Meitei a tribal, there should be no room for taking offence to it as they are calling a Mongoloid tribal a tribal. It is only due to reason of circumstances after Manipur merged with India and sometime in 1950 when the National Commission on Minorities inadequately/incorrectly collected/collated data based on which Meiteis were wrongly Constitutionally classified as non-tribal Hindus. In any case religion is not the criteria in this context. 

Other tribal of Manipur have become Christians - so called most advanced religion of the world, as per which tribal practices/customs have been done away with since the Bible does not allow it and western culture is being followed. Yet they are the recognised tribal of Manipur and Meiteis have suffered historical and Constitutional injustice now for more than half a century. Meiteis are a section of the community in Manipur convinced of the wholesomeness of its way of life and yet willing to change when faith and reason convince it that a change is necessary.

If therefore Meiteis are to live with dignity in India, the error in Indian Constitution of classifying tribal Meiteis as non-tribal should be corrected to undo the injustice done and a Constitutional provision made to provide legal protection and Constitutional safeguard to this 10 lakh odd Meiteis to exist with their customary tribal practices and rituals, by recognizing their original tribal status and declaring them as Scheduled Tribe in accordance with Article 366,342 of Indian Constitution.

It is tragic that Meiteis are projected by other tribals of Manipur as cunning non-tribal out to exploit and suppress simple, innocent tribal which is far from the truth. Further Meiteis are blamed for all the ills in their midst perhaps because the State capital Imphal which is the administrative hub and centre of economic activities of the State is seen to be developed vis-à-vis peripheral districts thereby projecting development in Manipur to be Meitei-centric which is again way off the mark and fodder for propaganda to create fissures between ethnic communities by vested interests. Perhaps we are not at war with each other but may be at conflict with Indian Constitution.

In the final analysis taking a cue from Thanglianpau Guite, General Secretary UPF who says, "perhaps the opportune time has come for all of us to think out of the box and change our parochial mindset in the interest of our collective survival"; this demand for undoing historical injustice and correcting the error from the Constitutional non-tribal status to the original scheduled tribe status to Meiteis should be the basis of a solution to our collective survival - the survival of all the indigenous people of Manipur as one fraternity, not only in India but also in this fast paced global world of 21st Century.

NB: Critical comments solicited at lokendra_laishram@yahoo.com

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PRICE OF INDIGENEITY: Meiteis’ demand for Scheduled Tribe Status(Republished from kanglaonline)

By:
Seram Neken, Imphal based Freelance Journalist

Simply speaking, groups with indigenous character are termed as ‘Scheduled Tribes’ in India. The word ‘Indigenous’ as used by the international community, is not used in Indian constitution as it refers to some sense of political self-determination. Perhaps, the framers of the Constitution gave room for cultural self-determinism of some specific groups in the form of Scheduled Tribe and Scheduled Caste under Clause 1 of Articles 341 and 342. Besides their primitive nature and geographical isolation; the Scheduled Tribes are identified with their social, educational and economic backwardness. Taking into account the presumed sufferings from extreme backwardness on account of the primitive agricultural practices, lack of infrastructural facilities and geographical isolation, the Constitution made provisions for safeguarding the interests and for accelerating the socio-economic development of the scheduled communities.

Indigenous peoples are peoples defined in international or national legislation as having a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory, and their cultural or historical distinctiveness from other politically and socially dominant populations. They are determined to preserve, develop and transmit to future generations their ancestral territories, identity, cultural patterns, social institutions and legal systems. A special set of political rights for the indigenous peoples have been set by international organizations like the United Nations, the International Labour Organization and the World Bank in accordance international law. The United Nations have issued a Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to guide national policies of various countries to collective rights of indigenous peoples—such as culture, identity, language and access to employment, health, education and natural resources. India has the most substantial population of indigenous communities which are recognized as Scheduled Tribes in its Constitution. In Himachal Pradesh, Rajputs and Brahmans are schedule Tribes. In Tripura, the descendents of the Kings are scheduled tribes. In Sikkim, the Bhutias are scheduled Tribes, so on and so forth.

Numerous government policies aim at promotion of tribal communities inhabiting all over India. The central and state governments have made sustained efforts to provide opportunities to these communities for their economic development by eradicating poverty and health problems and developing communication for removal of isolation of their habitats. Although Article 14 provides for equality before law and equal protection of law to all people, Article 15(4) allows the States to make special provisions for the advancement of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. In matters of employment or appointment to any office, Article 16(4) mentions that the State should make provisions for reservation in favour of any backward class citizen who is not adequately represented in the services. Article 16 (4A) and 16(4B) empower the States to make provisions for promotion in the services in favour of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. Article 46 directs the States to promote the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections particularly the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Article 275(1) makes provisions for grants-in-aid from the Consolidated Fund of India for promoting the welfare of the Scheduled Tribes and administration of Scheduled Areas. Reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in Parliament, state Legislature and in Panchayats is provided under Article 330, Article 332 and Article 243(D) respectively.

Even though the Meiteis in Manipur valley have fulfilled the criteria for being listed in Scheduled Tribes list, they have long been denied these opportunities due to non-inclusion in the list. After Manipur’s merger to Indian Union, Meiteis were given the status of the General Category. In spite of the Meiteis’ belongingness to the Mongoloid stock, a few influential people of that time introduced Meiteis as the descendents of the Aryans to the government of India. People of hill areas were given the status of Scheduled Tribe, while Lois and Yaithibis were categorized as Scheduled Castes. Meiteis have lagged behind other communities of Manipur in matters of appointments to various jobs and promotion to higher ranks due to its being in the general category. Now, Meiteis may also be given the opportunity to preserve and protect its unique culture and tradition under the Constitution. Moreover, in order to being balanced development of the various communities and to narrow down the apparent disparity among communities in Manipur, Meiteis should be accorded Scheduled Tribe status by declaring the whole state of Manipur as hill state. Recognition of Meiteis as a Scheduled Tribe will minimize the apprehension created by onslaught of outsiders from within or without the country. It will help preserve the composite identity and territory of the land.

Recognizing certain religions as religious minority under National Commission of Minorities Act 1992, the Government of India provides assistance in the education of children belonging to these religious minorities. Although National and State commissions have been set up to protect the people of religious communities, Sanamahi religion is yet to be recognized under this category. As Meiteis are adopting all the age-old indigenous traditions, the community can well be categorized as tribal. Meiteis worship Sanamahi deity and follow their age-old traditions during various ceremonies. Even after adopting Hinduism, Meiteis are still following the primitive culture and heritage of the forefathers. Meiteis particularly those following Sanamahi faith are fit to be recognized as Scheduled Tribe under the Constitution of India. Sanamahi faith may also be recognized as a religious minority. Non-inclusion of Meiteis in Scheduled Tribe list is a historical blunder. As an indigenous group, Meiteis need to protect and preserve its age-old customs, traditions and territory under the provisions of Indian Constitution. Right thinking individuals of the state should support the move for recognition of Meiteis as a Scheduled Tribe, even though it is a bit delayed.

Source: kanglaonline.com

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When “tribe” definition ceases to be anthropological and becomes constitutional

By Pradip Phanjoubam

The storm in the tea-cup over the demand from certain sections of the Meitei community for inclusion in the 5th Schedule of the Indian constitution which lists an ever increasing number of recognized tribes in India, is unfortunate for many radically different reasons. Obviously, the tribal status in India is no longer defined by anthropological or sociological parameters, but by the cravings of the incentives accorded to this status.

In this way, the conditions for an ever proliferating number of demands from different communities to be given the tribal status, and equally importantly, the reason for perpetuating this retrogressive social status by those who are already classified in this category, are inherent in the constitution itself. Let there be no dispute about this, what the section of the Meiteis are demanding is not the tribal status but the incentives that come along with it, just as the opposition to the demand by tribal students bodies in the state, is not to another community joining the tribal ranks, but the fear that there will be more competitors of these same incentives and governmental doles.

Both, are pathetic in equal measures, and in fact are the two sides of the same coin. The Meiteis should not be wanting to be tribals, I will give some of my reasons why, and on the other hand, the tribals should have been happy at the prospect of an expanded fraternity. That both parties see it other than this way, is nothing short of a tragedy of a grand story being reduced to a trivial and mundane one. On the wide canvas, the harmatia (or fatal flaw in personality) as the Greeks call it, is that of the incentive structuring of the Indian constitution, and not so much of the much visible dramatis personae of the current issue in Manipur.

I will not go further on whether the tribal status is good or bad for communities which are already listed in the 5th Schedule of the constitution, considering the sensitivity of the issue, but here are some of my reasons why the demand from a section of the Meiteis for tribal status is a bad idea, and I am not saying this out of sentimental reasons, but sound economics. It is a bad idea because the gains can only be short term, and the unseen prices paid for it will be far heavier. I have not done any empirical survey on the matter, so what I say here will be from general observations alone.

Whatever else may be said, the Meitei economy today is one of the most diversified, if not the most diversified in the entire northeast region, including Assam, precisely because its growth has been intrinsic in nature, and not so much a result of pre-fabricated, one-size-fit-all economic models dropped from above. It may not be a monetarily rich economy yet, but have no doubt it would prove the most resilient ultimately. In it is practically every component of a naturally cultured, therefore multifaceted, life’s battle hardened economy. Look at the range of professions the community has nurtured. From cycle repair shops to excellent motorcar workshops, from watch mechanics and TV repair professionals to medical professionals of the highest standards, from traditional doll makers, truck drivers, weavers, to media professionals and academics of repute. Blacksmiths, goldsmiths, gunsmiths, sportsmen, professional dancers, farmers, carpenters, masons, computer hackers… you name it and the Meitei society would have them. Many of these professions were groomed by survival needs, and most began as, and still are extremely lowly paid jobs. Yet they have managed to survive as economic traditions.

This range and reach could not have happened in a completely sponsored economy, which are essentially top heavy and bottom empty. The top is essential no doubt, but ultimately it will be the bottom which will make the difference, once the sponsors retreat.

In fact, most of my criticisms of the Manipur government’s employment, therefore economic policies have been from this standpoint. No government has done much to build the place’s modern economy from this rich traditional foundation, by striving to enrich the environment in which this diversification can thrive and expand, such as by ensuring electricity availability, improving road and internet connectivity, extending better credit facilities to prospective entrepreneurs etc. Instead, today gainful employment has come to mean only garnering government jobs, and we all know government jobs have a very low ceiling, and in fact this ceiling has already been reached. Nonetheless, creating jobs in the government’s parlance continues woefully to be confined to raising more police constabularies etc.

Let those amongst the Meiteis who want the 5th Schedule tribal status do some serious rethinking. Even the OBC status they are now classified into should be treated as a temporary measure. Imagine how hollow and vulnerable an economy which has only government job holders and nothing else would be. There is much wisdom in the saying “Phadi leitana imung keidouneida oiroi” (a household without phadi/towel, can never be complete).

But as I mentioned earlier, if the demand for tribal status by the Meiteis (or at least a section of the community) is bad, the opposition to it from those already classified as tribals is as shameful for it demonstrates how uncivil our “civil society” still is. Indeed, the debate over who or what should constitute the rather ethereal notion of “civil society” gets all the more intriguing in a conflict situation, such as in Manipur. The question is, should “civil society” have a technical definition and be treated as constituting of the occupants of a space earmarked between the State and private vested interests, or other power players, such as the militant challengers to the State’s authority and legitimacy?

While this definition of “civil society” is definitely not sufficient, it has been indeed a convenient one. The trouble however is, when there is a technical definition of “civil society”, it invariably turns into a hotly contested space, and in fact often readily transforms into an extension of the conflicts they are supposed to be arbitrating thus becoming in the process an instrument of the same war, though by other means.

Manipur is familiar with this phenomenon. The “civil society” space has been deeply fissured on sectarian ethnic lines, demonstrations of which are never in short supply. Such wars by other means are fought on practically every issue involving any two or more communities of the state’s multitude of communities. The division is also seen along other broader lines such as between the hill districts and valley districts, between the tribals and non-tribals etc.

It is not uncommon to even hear of self proclaimed human rights organisations, thrown up by mutually antagonistic ethnic communities, speaking two different languages on the same issue. It is as if there is nothing universal about even human rights. How then can the “civil society” be the agent for the much hyped problem solving discourses, is a question much ignored.

The technical ear-marking of a so called “civil society” space leads to another familiar problematic situation. The conflicting parties themselves begin actually to contest for this space by putting up their “civil society” proxies, having realized how powerful these bodies can be in force multiplying their agenda through precisely the “wars by other means”.

The result is a complication of the conflicts themselves. So much has already been written about how even students’ movements have become organs of those behind these conflicts. Some even float their own “civil society” bodies. Must this not be considered a corruption of the popular understanding of “civil society”? A rethink is vital to consider if the definition of civil society must not have some qualitative elements over and above just the quantitative.

A weak State has not helped matter one bit either. Here, legitimate powers that should vest only with it often get wrested away by numerous “civil society” bodies, adding to the general residue of insecurity amongst a larger section of the society. The Weberian notion of legitimate violence is no longer a monopoly of the state, precisely because of its ineptitude and lack of commitment. This legitimacy vests in the hands of so many so called “civil society” bodies, precisely because of the state defaulting. Take the latest case of the hauling up of ice-cream manufacturers for unhygienic factory environment by a students’ body. The vigilant act which would have gained them public legitimacy should have rested solely  with the government had it also been as committed to public interest.

Although in a different context, and lacking half the gravity of the powerfully communicated despair in Macbeth’s last word for his queen at the news of her death, in considering Manipur politics, one is reminded of how the great Shakespearean character summarised his wife’s life, “….a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

There are many issues of extreme urgency awaiting government attention. Law and order without dispute would rank as number one among all of these. I am not simply referring to the obvious case of insurgency but also again to the manner in which a major portion of what should have remained as sole governmental responsibility, as well as the seal of authority that should have been exclusively the government’s, are being allowed to be wrested away systematically by non-governmental players in the state’s sordid power game.

Or are we witnessing a cruel parody of what Karl Marx called the “withering away of the state”, to give way to a “dictatorship of the proletariat”. The presumption seemed to have been, when the masses are the dictators over their own affairs, rooms for injustice and oppression would be automatically eliminated. The lessons of the atrocities of the French Revolution, which too had justice and equality as its slogans, were surprisingly missed, and VI Lenin’s interpretation of Marxism took cognizance of this problematic area when he stressed on the centrality of the Party of elite thinkers and leaders in any Communist revolution.

In a way he anticipated a basic foundation of modern electoral democracy too, for indeed, democracy is also about a people electing its elite leadership to be in charge of their affairs till so long as they enjoy their confidence as expressed in their periodically renewed electoral mandates. In this way the quality of a democracy is also determined by the capability of an electorate to choose the best amongst its elite. You get the elite you deserve.

In Manipur, the state is withering away, not by any grand Marxian design, but precisely for the abject lack of a will or imagination to come up with a design. For our elected elite, the needs for accountability or good governance are secondary to their personal agenda centred around the competition for the spoils and clout of office.

A rule of the masses has thereby been unleashed, leading to a mad contest for the powers of governance amongst various “civil society” organisations. Today many of these mushrooming power centres have naturally filled in where the government is absent and have even assumed the judicial powers of summons, inquisitions and trials, executive powers of levying taxes, excise duties and even to mete out summary punishments.

They legislate too through diktats and decrees. And yet the government continues to pretend there is nothing seriously wrong and that the law and order situation has improved. Time for all, most pertinently the government, to wake up.
Source:kanglaonline.com

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