High Court interim order stays enumeration of Kuki, Garo, Kachari, and Mikir communities in Nagaland

Published on May 9, 2025

KOHIMA — The Kohima Bench of Gauhati High Court has directed Nagaland government not to take any exercise with regard to the enumeration of people belonging to Kuki, Garo, Kachari, and Mikir (Karbi) communities settled in the state.
Hearing a writ petition filed by the Kuki Inpi Nagaland, the Nagaland Garo Tribal Council, the Kachari Tribal Council Nagaland, and the Karbi Union Nagaland, the court granted an interim order staying the operation of the government's order dated September 20, 2024, and notification dated October 1, 2024, pending disposal of the petition.
The petitioners were aggrieved by the Home department (political branch) order directing the conduct of an enumeration exercise of the people and their direct descendants from Garo, Kuki, Kachari, and Mikir (Karbi) tribes settled in the state prior to December 1, 1963, so as to determine their eligibility for issuance of Indigenous Inhabitant Certificate (IIC)/Permanent Residence Certificate (PRC).

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According to the order, the enumeration exercise was scheduled for November 1, 2024, to January 31, 2025, and the publication of the draft list was set for February 15, 2025. The period for claims and objections was from February 17 to March 17, 2025.
The final list of the enumeration was to be published on May 6, 2025. However, the petitioners stated that the exercise has not commenced, and nothing has been done till date.
“The petitioner is (are) also aggrieved by the notification No. CN/CON/RIIN/2019 dated 01.10.2024, by which it has been stated that in pursuance of order No. CON/RINN 30/2020 dated 20.09.2024, the enumeration exercise is to be conducted for the Garo/Kuki/Kachari/Mikir (Karbi) Nepali/Gorkhas settled in the state of Nagaland, as mentioned for issuances of IIC/PRC, and in this notification dated 10.08.2024, also the schedule has been given for the enumeration exercise,” the order read.
The petitioners contended that they were notified as Schedule Tribes of Nagaland by the Schedule Tribes Order 1970 and they are similarly situated with all the Schedule Tribes of Nagaland “and therefore, the state respondents have no jurisdictions/power to take away the status of the petitioners as Schedule Tribes of the State of Nagaland.”
Justice Yarenjungla Longkumer listed the matter to be heard after three weeks. “Till the next date, the respondent shall not take any exercise with regard to the enumeration,” she ruled.