NEW DELHI: The Centre has extended the deadline for the Commission of Inquiry probing the 2023 ethnic violence in Manipur, giving the panel until May 20, 2027 to submit its report, according to a government notification issued on November 13, the Times of India reported.
Source: Times of India via Kanglei Pao, Nov 14, 2026
The Gazette notification directs the commission to submit its findings to the Centre "as soon as possible but not later than May 20, 2027", Newire reported, adding that the panel must evaluate the sequence of events, assess administrative responses and investigate potential lapses by officials or organisations.
Source: Newire, Nov 14, 2026
The panel's previous deadline was November 20, 2026, set by a Ministry of Home Affairs notification issued on May 14, 2026, PTI and ANI reported at the time. The fresh order is another extension in a series granted since the commission was set up.
Source: PTI via Swadesi News, May 15, 2026
A panel working since June 2023
The Centre constituted the three-member Commission on June 4, 2023, under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952, shortly after ethnic violence erupted in Manipur on May 3, 2023. The violence between the Meitei and Kuki communities claimed more than 260 lives, PTI reported.
Source: PTI via Swadesi News, May 15, 2026
The commission is now headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Balbir Singh Chauhan, who took over as chairperson on March 1, 2026 after the first chairperson, former Gauhati High Court Chief Justice Ajai Lamba, resigned with effect from February 28, 2026, Power Corridors reported.
Source: Power Corridors, Nov 13, 2026
The commission's mandate is to inquire into the causes and spread of the violence, the sequence of events, and the adequacy of the administrative response. With the new deadline, its report will now come only after the Manipur Assembly elections expected in March 2027, Power Corridors noted.
Source: Power Corridors, Nov 13, 2026