Six hurt after police crack down on NRC protest in Imphal

Guwahati: At least six persons were injured after police dispersed demonstrators in Imphal. There was a protest demanding the implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) before the Census was conducted.

Student activists locked down a government training institute over alleged preparations for the upcoming Census. An organisation called Just Fair Delimitation (JFD) organised the protest.

Naorem Malemba, Assistant Organisation Secretary of JFD, said the protest is to oppose the ongoing preparations for the census and delimitation process. “We demand deferment of the ongoing census process until the identification of illegal immigrants is completed with reference to the 1951 census. If the census is conducted, it will pose challenges to our societal balance. So before conducting the census we demand updation of NRC and census later.”


Several women vendors from the Ima Market joined the demonstration along with other supporters.

A police official said as protestors swelled in large numbers in Khwairamband Bazar area, Police attempted to disperse the gathering after protesters allegedly tried to block roads and disrupt normal movement in the area. During the police action, six persons sustained injuries and were provided medical attention.

The official said the budget session of the Manipur assembly is underway and protestors had a plan to march to the assembly complex. However, police intervened and dispersed the crowd before they could proceed towards the Assembly complex.

Organisations stated, “we request the Chief Minister to take up a resolution in the House stating that no delimitation exercise should be conducted without the implementation of NRC,” he added.

The protests took place amid the ongoing preparations for the Census of India 2027, after the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the proposal to conduct the exercise on December 12, 2025. The 16th Census, originally scheduled for 2021, had been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.