Former Manipur chief minister N. Biren Singh on Wednesday flagged the issue of refugee settlements in the state which is an emotional issue in the Meitei-majority valley.

In a lengthy post on X, Singh asked whether Manipur was a “Dumping Ground for Refugees from the Very Beginning?”

“Amid all the political noise and distractions that often cloud our public discourse, we must not lose sight of the core issue, one that has been quietly shaping Manipur’s reality for decades. It’s hard not to feel a deep sense of frustration when we look back at what has unfolded in Manipur over the decades,” Singh posted.

“Official records show that even before we became a full-fledged state, thousands of refugees were settled here with the knowledge of the authorities at the time. As early as the late 1960s and early 70s, documents reveal the presence of over 1,500 families who had crossed over and were provided assistance for rehabilitation. This wasn’t some isolated event.”

Singh said there were multiple letters from MPs, government departments and refugee associations pointing to the presence of a large number of refugees in Manipur.

“One such letter, written by Shri Paokai Haokip, then Member of Parliament from Manipur, addressed to Shri K.C. Pant, Minister of State for Home Affairs, explicitly acknowledged the presence of over 1,500 refugee families who had already been settled in Manipur by 1967. His correspondence is just one among several that confirm how deeply rooted and long-standing this issue is,” the post said.

He then asks what happened to those families?

“How were they integrated? How many generations have grown since then? These questions have never been fully addressed in the public domain. Instead, the issue has remained largely unspoken, even as the demographic structure of the state evolved quietly over the years. It’s important to ask whether there were legal mechanisms in place to ensure these individuals remained in refugee status.”

Singh’s post has to be seen in the backdrop of the ongoing unrest between the Meiteis and the Kuki-Zos. Meiteis blame the ongoing unrest on influx from neighbouring Myanmar and have been pushing for the implementation of the NRC.