Manipur govt initiates action against unauthorised renaming of places

Imphal: The Manipur government has initiated legal action against individuals or organisations involved in the unauthorised renaming of places under the Manipur Names of Places Act, 2024, officials said here on Tuesday.

Recently, the Kuki National Front-Military Council erected a gate in Churachandpur district, renaming a part of the Thangjing Hill range as ‘Thangting' instead of 'Thangjing Ching'.

Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh wrote in a post on X: “The state government has immediately taken up measures to book any group or individuals involved in changing existing names of places in the state. Under the Manipur Names of Places Act, 2024, a case has also been registered for renaming a part of the Thangjing Hill range as Thangting."

Manipur Land Resources department has lodged an FIR at the Imphal police station against the renaming of the Thangjing Hill range.

The department’s Under Secretary, Mangoljao Kamei, said that the present-day Thangjing Hill range falls within the Churachandpur-Khoupum Protected Forests which was notified on September 17, 1966, under the Indian Forest Act, 1927.

Thangjing (Thang Ching) is a hill of historical importance and the Art and Culture Department of the state government has declared it as a protected site under Section 4 of the Manipur Ancient and Historical Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1976, Kamei said.

The FIR said that as the erection of a gate bearing the words Kuki National Front-Military Council with the name of the site mentioned as Thangting indicates unauthorised changing of the original name of Thangjing (Thang ching). It violates the provision of the Manipur Names of Places Act, 2024, and the Manipur Ancient and Historical Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1976.

The official requested the police to register a ‘Zero FIR’ at Imphal police station as Thangjing Hill range falls under the Henglep police station.

After the ethnic violence broke out in Manipur in May last year, a few organisations in the hilly regions tried to rename come places, forcing the state government to enact the Manipur Names of Places Act, 2024.