The Manipur High Court put the Census 2027 exercise in the state on hold till April 30, 2027, and directed the Centre to examine concerns over conducting it amid ethnic violence and displacement.
The court asked the Centre and the Registrar General and Census Commissioner to consider representations made by the petitioners and pass orders by that date.
The petitioners said damaged and abandoned houses, closed roads and displacement could affect the accuracy of the population count. They sought a fresh population count, particularly in the hill areas, a delimitation exercise and an update of the National Register of Citizens before the census.
The representations also raised concerns over alleged demographic changes linked to the conflict and immigration. They alleged that unauthorised villages had emerged after the violence and that Bangladeshi immigrants had entered the state and married local women.
The Centre had deferred the house-listing phase of the census in Manipur through a September 5 notification without announcing a new date. The phase records houses and household details. The notification amended a January 7 order covering all states and Union territories, excluding Manipur till further declaration.
Manipur has faced ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities since May 3, 2023. Figures shared in the state Assembly in September said at least 306 people had been killed and 49 remained missing. Government data released in April showed that more than 58,000 people had been displaced, nearly 7,900 houses destroyed and over 2,600 partially damaged.
