JFD’s general strike over demands for NRC updation before the Census disrupts transport, markets, schools and government offices across Manipur on September 1.
Imphal, September 1: Normal life was disrupted across several parts of Manipur on Tuesday as a 24-hour general strike called by the Campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation (JFD) over the Census and National Register of Citizens (NRC) affected transport, markets, educational institutions and government offices.
The organisation has demanded that all Census-related activities in Manipur be halted and that the NRC be updated before any Census exercise is conducted in the state.
JFD Convenor Jeetendra Ningombam maintained that there was no reason to call off the strike until the organisation’s demands were addressed. He stated that the immediate demands included stopping Census-related activities in Manipur and updating the NRC.
The strike was observed across Imphal, Bishnupur, Thoubal, Kakching and Jiribam, among other areas. Markets and shops remained closed, passenger services were largely suspended and educational institutions stayed shut. Government offices recorded low attendance, while road blockades were reported at several locations.
In parts of Imphal and the valley districts, protesters used tyres, bamboo and wooden barricades to restrict vehicular movement. Sit-in protests and poster campaigns were also held, with slogans including “No NRC, No Census.”
In Jiribam, student organisations AMSU, MSF, DESAM and SUK supported the shutdown and staged a road blockade along NH-37. In Kakching, rallies, human chains and road blockades were organised at several locations. Similar protests were reported in Bishnupur and Thoubal districts.
District-level reports indicated that emergency medical movement was generally exempted from the shutdown. No major untoward incident was reported from Jiribam and Kakching.
The strike came after the Union Government decided to defer Census operations in Manipur following a high-level review meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi on August 31.
The meeting was attended by Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh, Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan and other senior officials.
According to the Chief Minister’s Secretariat, the meeting considered the demand from sections of the people of Manipur that the Census should be postponed until the NRC is implemented in the state.
The Union government subsequently agreed to defer the proposed Census exercise in Manipur, taking into consideration what the Chief Minister’s Secretariat described as the “feelings and aspirations” of the people.
However, the JFD has maintained that merely deferring the exercise does not meet its demands. The organisation is seeking a halt to Census-related activities and implementation of the NRC before the Census is conducted.
The Centre’s decision was followed by an order of the High Court of Manipur on August 31 keeping the house-listing operation for the Census of India 2027 in abeyance in the state until October 12.
The order was passed by a Special Division Bench comprising Chief Justice M. Sundar and Justice A. Guneshwar Sharma, barely a day before house-listing operations were scheduled to begin on September 1.
The proceedings followed petitions challenging the commencement of Census-related activities in Manipur amid the ongoing conflict, displacement and concerns over demographic changes.
During the August 31 hearing, the Deputy Solicitor General of India informed the court, on instructions from the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, that the Central Government had decided to postpone or defer house-listing operations in Manipur.
The court recorded the submission as an undertaking of the Central Government. The Centre also indicated that the relevant notification would be suitably modified to reflect the decision.
The Advocate General of Manipur, Lenin Hijam, subsequently informed the court that the State Government would not commence house-listing operations from September 1 and that the relevant state notification would remain in abeyance pending the Centre’s formal notification.
Both the Central and State governments requested that the matters be listed after four weeks, stating that the issues raised by the petitioners would be considered at the highest level in the intervening period.
Based on the undertakings given by the two governments, the High Court directed that the house-listing operation scheduled to commence on September 1 be kept in abeyance until the next hearing.
The Special Bench fixed October 12, 2026, at 2 pm for the next listing and directed the parties to complete their pleadings in the meantime.
The court therefore did not finally decide the broader issues raised in the petitions. Instead, the immediate house-listing exercise was kept on hold based on the positions placed before the Bench by the Central and State governments.
Despite the Centre’s decision and the High Court order, the JFD proceeded with its general strike on Tuesday.
The organisation has maintained that the issue is not limited to postponement of the Census. Its principal demand is that the NRC in Manipur be updated before the Census is conducted.
Jeetendra Ningombam’s position that there was no reason to withdraw the strike until the demands were addressed indicates that the organisation intends to continue pressing the government even after the immediate Census exercise has been deferred.
The demand has also been linked by protest organisers to the large-scale displacement caused by the ongoing conflict in Manipur. Several participating groups have argued that Census operations should not proceed until internally displaced persons (IDPs) are able to return to their respective homes.
At protests across the valley, participants reiterated demands for NRC updation, opposition to the Census without the NRC and the resettlement of displaced people.
With the house-listing process now kept in abeyance until October 12, the next phase of the dispute is likely to centre on the government's proposed course of action on the NRC and the eventual conduct of Census operations in Manipur.
For now, the Census exercise remains deferred in the state, while the JFD has made clear that it intends to continue its agitation until its demands are addressed.
