KOHIMA: The Naga Village Chief Federation, Manipur (NVCFM), recently, responded to a statement given out by the Meetei (Meitei) Tribe Union in a bid to abolish hereditary chieftainship.
Says the secretary of NVCFM, SN Darthot Peter in a statement issued on Thursday, "What is essentially required is addressing the demands placed by the Meetei (Meitei) Tribe Union, which appeared in the local paper of October 13, titled 'MMTU calls for the abolition of hereditary chieftainship."
To clarify the matter and to prevent any future misunderstanding, the NVCFM declared that by its terms "hereditary" and "chieftainship," it is an inalienable right given to a rightful chief of a village.
No clans can challenge or take away that right since the chief is described as the original discoverer and settler of the place called the village.
They argue that the demand for ending hereditary chieftainship would put a question mark on Manipur's history, which had been maintained with the help of the village chiefs against different invaders.
This demand of the NVCFM directly attacks the institution of village chiefs and emphasizes the point that the government has no right to take away this legitimate authority. They further noted that the appointing of a village chief is based on hereditary lineage, which is not at the discretion of the state or central government as it is purely hereditary. They wondered why the MMTU was advocating for its abolition.
The federation further observes that chiefs, whom it perceives as rightful leaders, are respected by the villagers in return for taking good care of their matters and safeguarding their lands, customs, traditions, and culture.
The NVCFM also argued that the reasons behind the entry of illegal immigrants and the surge in villages in the hill districts of Manipur cannot be attributed to hereditary chieftainship alone. As they cited, no one or group can merely split from their mother village to become a chief of a new town. To form a new village, there is already an established procedure under customary laws, they contended.
From these points, the NVCFM concluded that they needed to indicate this clear point to answer the misconceptions concerning calls to eradicate hereditary chieftainship from the records altogether. Such distortions and misconceptions must not be allowed as the village chiefs have been part of their community since immemorial.
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