New Delhi: The Kuki Inpi Manipur has come out against the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Manipur, calling it “unacceptable” as tens of thousands of people are still displaced due to the prolonged ethnic conflict.The Kuki apex body, in a statement released on Thursday (June 4), said that the exercise is being carried out without first addressing the situation of displaced residents, demanding that “satisfactory arrangements” be made to “ensure that no displaced person is left out of the process.”The Kuki Inpi Manipur underlined that 59,000 people belonging to the Kuki-Zo community are internally displaced and remain unable to return home which raises concerns regarding “fairness, inclusivity, and administrative responsibility” of the SIR exercise.“The ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Manipur is unacceptable under the prevailing circumstances and raises serious concerns regarding fairness, inclusivity, and administrative responsibility. The Kuki Inpi Manipur had expected that the government would first put in place adequate and practical arrangements to address the situation of the approximately 59,000 Kuki-Zo internally displaced persons (IDPs), who continue to remain displaced and are unable to return to their homes to participate in this exercise,” the body said.The SIR is already underway in the state, Block Level Officers (BLOs) started conducting door-to-door visits for the verification and enumeration process from May 30. A draft electoral roll is set to be published on July 5, with the final list expected on September 6 following a claims and objections window.Pushing ahead with such a critical electoral and administrative process without ensuring participation of a large and vulnerable section of the population, the body argued, undermines the principles of democratic representation.Also read: Manipur’s Electoral Roll Revision Raises New Concerns Amid Unrelenting Violence“It is therefore imperative that the government, along with the concerned district administrations, take immediate and concrete steps to establish accessible and inclusive mechanisms that will enable all affected IDPs to be duly enrolled and participate in the revision process,” the statement added.Even last month after the Election Commission (EC) made the announcement regarding SIR exercise in the state, Kuki civil society organisations pointed out that thousands of community members remain internally displaced, many living in relief camps or outside of the state, and have lost access to their homes, official documents and local administrative infrastructure.The Manipur Tribals’ Forum Delhi (MTFD) had also urged that the SIR should not be conducted in a manner that unintentionally legitimises the aftereffects of violence and displacement. Further, it had suggested that alternate documents should be recognised in place of identity and address proofs lost during the conflict.The Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum had demanded that Manipur be exempted from the exercise until a concrete mechanism is developed to protect displaced people.Former Sagolband AC MLA K. Loken said on May 17 that conducting SIR amid Manipur’s “unstable situation” is “very unfortunate.”Notably, the first two rounds of the SIR was mired in controversies. In West Bengal, 2.7 million voters were left to wait for their fate to be decided by 19 judicial tribunals less than two weeks before polls, with even the Supreme Court refusing to grant interim relief. The tribunals eventually decided on a miniscule number of cases before polling day.Three killed in Manipur todayOn June 5 (Friday) morning, three Kuki villagers, including a woman, were killed and seven houses were set ablaze at Loibol Khullen in Saitu-Gamphazol subdivision of Kangpokpi district, The New Indian Express reported.The Kuki Inpi Manipur alleged that the attack was carried out by armed cadres of the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN-IM) and its alleged proxy outfit, Zeliangrong United Front.“This reprehensible act of violence has resulted in the tragic killing of three innocent civilians and the destruction of homes and livelihoods,” the Kuki body said.