Right to Information (RTI) queries have revealed that the Scheduled Tribes (ST) certificates of some Manipur government employees list tribes that do not exist in the state’s official list of 34 STs approved by Parliament. The findings have prompted several departments to initiate internal investigations to verify the authenticity of such certificates.
According to a report by Debanish Achom at NDTV, the RTI applications were filed with over 40 government departments, of which 13 have responded so far. Responding departments include Water Resources, Finance, Fisheries, Transport, Horticulture, Handloom and Textile, Municipal Administration, and Public Distribution. The information shows inconsistencies in the ST certificates issued to some employees, particularly relating to the ‘Any Kuki Tribes’ (AKT) and other unlisted tribe names.
Manipur’s official ST list recognises 34 tribes, including ‘Thadou’ and ‘Any Kuki Tribes’ as separate entries, with the last addition being ‘Mate’ in 2012. RTI responses indicate that some certificates mention tribes such as ‘Thadou-Kuki,’ ‘Kuki,’ or ‘Khongsai-Kuki,’ which do not exist in the official ST list.
The Water Resources Department reported recruiting five employees from the AKT community since 2003, four of whom had fathers’ certificates listing ‘Thadou,’ and one held a ‘Vaiphei’ certificate before becoming AKT. The Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Department confirmed appointments of ten employees listed as “Kuki tribe” without verifying the ST certificates. Similarly, the Horticulture Department reported employees with certificates showing ‘Thadou-Kuki’ and ‘Kuki.’
These discrepancies raise legal questions under Articles 16(4) and 342 of the Constitution, which restrict ST reservations to officially recognised tribes. Supreme Court rulings have affirmed that appointments based on invalid ST certificates are liable to be cancelled.
The RTI report also traces the complex history of AKT, which was removed from Manipur’s ST list in 1956 and reinserted in 2003 by the then Congress government for political reasons. Unlike Assam, where AKT serves as an umbrella term for sub-tribes, in Manipur it is treated as a distinct tribe, causing potential confusion in certificate issuance.