CENTRE BANS MEITEI EXTREMIST OUTFITS IN MANIPUR FOR 5 YEARS

The outfits have been banned under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

- ASHISH SINHA

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has banned several Meitei extremist outfits for five years under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). A notification in this regard was issued on Monday.

The Home Ministry's notification states that the aim of these outfits is to establish an independent nation of Manipur by separating it from India through armed struggle and to instigate the indigenous people of Manipur for such secession.

The groups banned for the next five years include the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and its political wing, the Revolutionary People's Front (RPF), the United National Liberation Front (UNLF) and its armed wing, the Manipur People's Army (MPA). The People's Revolutionary Party of Kangleypak (PREPAK) and its armed wing the Red Army, the Kangleypak Communist Party (KCP) and its armed wing (also known as the Red Army), the Kangley Yaol Kanba Lup (KYKL), the Coordinating Committee (KORCOM), and Alliance for Socialist Unity Kangleipak (ASUK).

The Home Ministry had years ago declared PLA, UNLF, PREPAK, KCP, KYKL as banned organisations under UAPA and this latest action has extended the ban for a further five years.