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Administration report of the Manipur State
for the year 1946-47 p.2 reads: 'The
Political movement and labor strikes in
British India had their repercussions in the
State. His Highness agreed to the setting up
of a Constitution making committee composed
of officials and non-officials to draft a
Constitution for the State, representatives
for the valley were returned by indirect
election held in five tehsils and those for
the hill were sent up by the President,
Manipur State Darbar in whose special
responsibility lay the then administration
of the Hills. His Highness addressed the
members of the Palace Darbar Hall and made
known His Highness's intentions. The first
meeting of the committee was held on the
March 24, 1947. The draft Constitution was
passed by the committee on May 8, 1947. It
was a great credit to this committee that
they could in such a short time bring out an
agreed Constitution. Manipur and her people
will owe to them a great deal.
The Maharaja issued an order on December 12,
1946 to set up a Constitution making
committee to draft a Constitution for
Manipur. It consisted of
1. Three Darbar members including PMSD - 3
2. The member to be deputed by Chief Court.
3. One member to be nominated by the
Maharaja.
4. One representative to be deputed by each
of the five tehsils of the valley - 5
5. One representative to be deputed by each
of the five hill areas of Ukhrul, Mao,
Tamenglong, Churachandpur and South East
Area - 5
6. One representative from Jiri nominated by
the King- 1
Total - 16.
(However the delay in drafting of the
Constitution was taken by the Assam
Government as the intentional delaying
tactics in order to perpetuate autocratic
rule of the Maharaja after the lapse of the
British Paramountcy. In order to prescribe
an administrating system aimed at checking
the powers of the Maharaja, a rule for the
administration of the State was drafted by
EF Pearson and improved by GP Stewart, the
political Agent of Manipur and approved by
the Assam Government and it was made
effective from July 1, 1947)
The Maharaja formed an election committee
which was constituted by three members. The
election to the Constitution Making
Committee was held on January 20, 1947 to
elect representatives from five Tehsils of
the Valley and on January 21, 1947, the
Chairman of the Election Committee submitted
the list of elected persons.
The candidates of the Congress party were
returned from the following four tehsils:
1. H Dwijamani Sarma: Bishnupur.
2. S. Krishnamohan Singh - Imphal West
3. Dr N Leiren Singh - Imphal East
4. L. Jugeshwore Singh - Thoubal.
Irom Mera Jatra Singh was elected from
Mayang Imphal Tehsil and S. Bijoy Singh was
nominated from Jiri Tehsil. The political
Agent informed the Raja on Feb 28, 1947 that
it was impossible to hold election in the
Hill Tehsil. Therefore the following members
were nominated by the President Manipur
State Darbar from this hill tehsil:
1. A. Daiho: Mao
2. R. Suisa: Ukhrul
3. Teba Kilong: Tamenglong
4. TC Tiankham: Churachandpur
5. Thanyoupao Kipgen: South East Area.
The Darbar deputed (1) S Somorendra Singh,
BA (2) Md Quaji Wallia Ulla, BA (3) FF
Pearson, MA, the PMSD. The chief court
deputed L Ibungohal Singh.
With a view to framing a Constitution for
the popular Government of the State of
Manipur the Maharaja made an announcement to
the people and addressed the Constitution
making committee members on March 10, 1947.
FF Pearson, the President, Manipur State
Darbar was the chairman of the Committee. He
opened the meeting held on March 24, 1947 by
reading out letters from the Political Agent
and from His Highness the Maharaja
respectively.
It also resolved that a subcommittee with
Sjt Ibungohal Singh, Sjt H Dwijamani Sarma
and Mr A Dailo should draft rules of
procedure and submit the same to the
committee on the March 27, 1947 and then
informal discussion was held.
On March 26, 1947 only informal discussions
were held which was a continuation from that
of March 24, 1947.
On the March 27, 1947, the committee
considered the Draft Rules of procedure
submitted by the sub-committee and accepted
them.
In the light of the informal discussion held
on the March 24 and March 26, the Chairman
placed a revised draft Resolution on aims
and objects before the committee.
Draft:
To consider and lay down the principles on
which the Constitution Making Committee
consider it desirable to frame the State
Constitution.
Resolved that the time has now come when
changes in the Constitutional position of
India and the probable cessation of
paramountcy make it essential to evolve a
Constitutional form of Government for the
Manipur State which will provide for the
close association of the people of the State
with the State Government.
The committee considers that the goal must
be a full responsible Government under His
Highness the Maharaja as a Constitutional
Ruler, exercised through a popular elected
Assembly and a Council of Ministers
responsible to that Assembly. They recommend
that a period of ten years shall be allowed
for the State to reach this goal and that
during the ten years’ period a Constitution
should be adopted which will allow formation
of Government by His Highness as a
Constitutional ruler and a Council
consisting of a Chief Minister and six
Ministers, responsive to the wishes of an
elected Assembly of which the six Ministers
shall be elected by the Assembly and of
which the Chief Minister shall be appointed
by His Highness in consultation with the
elected Ministers.
The committee believes that in any
Constitution now evolved, provision must be
made for the merger of the valley and the
hill areas of the State under one State
Government. However, in view of the special
position of the Hill peoples, special
safeguards will, it is believed, be
necessary and it is considered that these
can be provided by arrangements under which
a large measure of Local Self Government is
introduced in those areas. In agreeing to
this the representative of the Hills have
requested that it be placed on record that
their agreement to any such arraignment is
conditional on a right being reserved to any
section of the Hill people to secede from
the State at the end of the ten years,
should this course be desired by that
section.
Finally the committee wishes to record the
following principles which they consider
must be adopted if the Constitutional
Government is to mean anything.
i) The complete separation of the Executive
from the Judiciary.
ii) The abolition of forced Labor and Beggar
except for the maintenance of inter-village
paths or as a penalty levied by a regular
court of law or for any purpose as may be
agreed by a circle authority in the hills.
iii) The complete freedom of religious
thought and practice.
iv) Freedom of speech and freedom of the
press under the law.
Sjt A Ibotombi Singh moved an amendment that
at least half the strength of the Council of
Ministers should be nominated by His
Highness. The amendment received no
seconders.
1. Sjt Dwijamani Sarma moved that the
interim arrangement should be for 3 years
and not for ten - Mr Suisa seconded this
amendment. The amendment was passed by seven
votes to four members remaining neutral.
Sjt L. Ibungohal Singh moved that a
compromise period of 5 years should be
adopted. Sjt Somorendra Singh seconded and
on Sjt Dwijamani Sarma withdrawing his
resolution, the suggestion of Sjt Ibungohal
Singh was accepted unanimously.
All members were present in the meeting held
on March 29, 1947 with the exception of
Daiho and Suisa prevented by illness.
Dwijamani Sharma brought it to the notice of
the Committee that the Resolution in para 3
of the Draft Resolution regarding the Hill
areas had not been seconded. He also
objected to a matter of such a controversial
nature being proposed by the chair.
The meeting noted that this part of the
Resolution was not seconded and the chairman
while reserving his right under the rules of
propose resolution on amendments, agreed
that as a matter of convention he would not
move resolutions on clearly controversial
matters.
2. Dwijamani Sharma moved that para 3 of the
Draft Rules regarding the Hill
Administration should read as follows:
'The committee resolve that in the
Constitution provision must be made for the
integration of the Hill and Valley
administration under one Constitution. In
view of the special problem arising from the
administration of the Hills that the
Constitution must provide for a large
measure of local self Government in the Hill
areas.
The motion was seconded by Thangoupao and
was passed unanimously.
3. The committee took up the consideration
of Para 4 of the Resolution regarding the
principles...
It was agreed that sub-section 3 should read
as follows: 'The Guarantee to all people of
the State of justice, social, economic, and
political, equality of status and
opportunity and before the law; freedom of
thought, expression of belief, faith,
worship, vocation, association and action,
subject to law and public morality'.
4. The committee unanimously agreed that it
be placed on record that the provision
agreed to in this Resolution are agreed to
for the five year period only and all
sections of the community represented on the
committee reserve the right to complete
freedom of action at the end of the five
year period irrespective of any views
expressed in this resolution.
5. The committee resolved to form
sub-committees as under:
Constitution Drafting sub-committee
Chairman: Sjt Ibungohal Singh BA, BL
Sjt Ibotombi Singh BA
Sjt Dwijamani Sharma MA
Sjt Krisnamohan Singh MA, BL
Mr Daiho BA.
Mr. Thangoupao BA.
Hill Local self Government Resolution
Committee
Chairman - Mr FF Pearson, MA
Sjt Ibotombi Singh, BA
Mr Daiho BA
Mr Thangoupao BA
Mr. Suisa
Mr. Thankam
Mr. Teba
Dr Leiren Singh
In the meeting held on May 2, 1947, the
Chairman proposed that as a large section of
the Hill peoples considered that they had
not been properly represented on the
committee; one additional Hill
Representation should be selected by the
Chairman and co-opted into the committee.
The proposal was seconded by Sjt Somorendra
Singh.
The committee wished it to be placed on
record that they raised no objection to this
proposal saying that Messrs. Dwijamani Sarma,
Krishnamohan Singh, Jugeshwor Singh and Dr
Lairen wished it to be recorded that, they
consider this matter to be the primary
concern of the nominating authority and not
of the committee. It was further made clear
that in the view of the committee the
appointment could only be made on the basis
that the additional representative accepted
resolution passed by the committee prior to
his joining the committee.
Then the committee considered all sections
of the Draft Constitution Act upto and
including Section 10. All were accepted and
passed unanimously with minor amendment in
section 10(d). The amendment was put to the
vote and was passed by eight votes to five,
Mr. Ibungohal remain neutral.
On May 3, 1947, the committee considered and
passed unanimously Section 11 to 38 of the
draft Constitution with the exception of
Section 7. On this section there was debate
whether election should be on the basis of
joint or separate electorates. The matter
was put to the vote and the committee
decided in favor of joint electorates by a
majority of 9 votes to 3. Mr. Suisa remained
neutral. Messrs. Daiho, Tiankham and Teba
representing the minority vote wished it to
be placed on record that in their view the
backwardness of the Hill people demanded
special treatment in the Hills and that
while there should be joint electorates
within the hill circle, as between the
valley and the hill people there should be
separate electorates.
On May 5, 1947, all members were present
including Mr. Chikhong, the additional Hill
Representative but excluding Mr. Mera Jatra
Singh who was absent. The remaining section
of the Draft Constitution Act from Section
39 onwards was considered and was passed
unanimously.
On May 6, 1947, Section from 1 to 26 of the
Manipur State Hill Peoples (Administration)
Regulation was passed unanimously with the
exception of Section 26. In regard to this
section, Mr. Dwijamani Sharma proposed that
it should be amended to read ‘of which a
judge of this Chief Court shall be chairman
sitting with two hillmen as judges’.
The amendment was seconded and put to the
vote being passed by a majority of 13 votes
to 2. The chairman wished it to be placed on
record that this minority view had his full
support and that the section should read 'of
which a judge of the Chief Court shall be
chairman sitting with the two hill Ministers
as the Council of judges'. The chairman
informed the committee that in his view no
hill man could for some time be available
with the necessary qualification to exercise
the regular powers of a session judge and
that the volume of work likely to come
before the Hill Branch would not justify the
appointment of two full time all judges.
In a meeting held on May 8, 1947, all
members were present except Krishnamohan
Singh.
The committee considered all the remaining
section of the Draft Regulation and passed
them unanimously, with the exception of the
following
(a) Section 32 (considered along with
section 20b to which this amendment also
applies). It was proposed that the non-appealable
limit in section 20(b) and 32 should be
fixed at Rs. 100 instead of Rs. 200 as
proposed by the sub-committee and at one
month's imprisonment in place of three
months. The committee approved this
amendment with the exception of Messrs.
Daiho and Thongoupao who wished to record
their support for the original figure of Rs.
200 and three month imprisonment. The
chairman supported the minority view.
(b) Section 33- It was unanimously agreed
that the following should be added to this
section saving that in every case where a
person other than a Hill man is a party and
appeal shall lie from a senate of five
exceeding Rs. 100 or from a sentence of
imprisonment.
2. The section of the Regulation having been
read and passed, Mr. Daiho and Mr. Tiankham
pointed out that no provision had been made
in the Constitution to give effect to this
principle in the statement of objective
regarding opting out at the end of the five
year period and moved that the following
should be incorporate in this Constitution:-
'The Principle of equality and freedom as
applied to all without distinction of caste,
creed and race shall include the right of
any section of the Hill Peoples to secede at
the end of the five years period, should
condition within the Constitution not be
satisfactory'. Mr. Daiho and Mr. Tiankhan
made it clear that if such a clause was not
incorporated they could not be a party to
the Constitution.
The committee considered that they were not
competent to recommend that any Section of
the State should have the right to secede
and that any such question could more
properly be raised by the dissatisfied at
the end of the five year period.
The committee having completed consideration
of the Draft Constitution and the Draft Hill
Regulation, requested that the Draft as
passed with minorities should be printed and
that the Chairman should forward copies to
His Highness the Maharaja for consideration
and to all members of the committee for
their record. The chairman agreed to this.
On October 14, 1947 a meeting of Manipur
State Constitution Making committee was held
to frame Franchise Rules. The following
members were present. Capt PB Singh,
Chairman Sjt Ibungohal Singh, Sjt K Gouro
Singh, Maulabi Bashir Uddin Ahmad, Sjt S.
Krishnamohan Singh, Sjt Dwijamani Sharma,
Sjt Dr Leiren Singh, Sjt S Bijoy Singh, Mr.
Thangkhopao, Mr. TC Tankham, Mr. Teba Kilong,
Sjt L Manihar Singh, I Merajatra Singh, Sjt
L Jugeshwor Singh. Mr. Chikhong was unable
to attend due to Audit Inspector (some
changes of members may be noted)
Sjt Dwijamani Sharma proposed that a
sub-committee be formed and proposed the
name of Sjt L Ibungohal BA BL as chairman
and Mr. Tiankham seconded. Resolve to form a
Franchise sub-committee as under:
Sjt L Ibungohal, Chairman
Sjt L Manihar Singh
Sjt Dwijamani Singh
Sjt S Krishnamohan Singh
Mr. Thangkhopao
Maulabi Bair Uddin Ahmad
Mr. Teba Kilong
GHS Offg Private Secretary to HH the
Maharaja of Manipur vide order No. 64P of
1947 dt October 18, 1947 informed that His
Highness the Maharaja of Manipur was pleased
to make the Draft Constitution operative
within 8 (eight) months calculated from
September 26, 1947 and in the meantime the
work of the Franchise committee of the
electoral roll and the preparation for
election should be made immediately after
which the election shall take place.
The Constitution making Committee was
dissolved with effect from the August 5,
1948.
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