Manipur violence: SC asks Centre to examine a request by 284 students seeking relocation to central universities

Senior advocate Meenakshi Arora, representing the petitioners, requested a bench led by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud to issue a direction to allow university students affected by the ethnic violence in Manipur to be admitted to other central universities.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the counsel, representing the Centre and Manipur government, to examine a plea by 284 Manipuri students seeking a direction to the Centre to relocate them to different central universities in the country.

Senior advocate Meenakshi Arora, representing the petitioners, requested a bench led by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud to issue a direction to allow university students affected by the ethnic violence in Manipur to be admitted to other central universities. Arora stressed that students have already lost 6 months in the academic year and pointed out that for Kashmir migrants the same thing was done. Arora said most of them are out of Manipur now.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, said the list of students was given to the committee and the committee is looking into it. The bench, also comprising justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, asked the counsel, “Why can't you move the high court? The Manipur High Court has a Chief Justice now, approach him….”.

Arora contended that students are losing time and 6 months have already elapsed in the academic session, and due to the violence in the state they moved out. Mehta said it's a problem, it needs to be sorted and urged the petitioners’ counsel not 't join the apex court-appointed committee as a party in the matter. Arora said they were all studying at the Manipur University at Imphal when the violence broke out. The apex court deleted the committee as a respondent from the petition.

The apex court noted that due to the situation in Manipur, the petitioner's counsel argued that many students had to leave the state and their studies have been interrupted for six months, and they requested a direction to relocate them to other central universities so that there is no loss of their studies. The apex court asked Mehta and the Advocate General of Manipur to look into the matter and scheduled it for further hearing on Monday. The apex court was hearing a plea by Manipur University Eimi Welfare Society and others.

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