Inner Line Permit System (ILPS)

Subject – Security and Defence

Context – Plea in Supreme Court against ILPS in Manipur

Concept –

It is a concept based on the policy of exclusion drawn by colonial rulers in the form of Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation Act (BEFR), 1873.
The BEFR prohibits an outsider’s — “British subject or foreign citizen” — entry into the area beyond the Inner Line without a pass and his purchase of land there.
It protected the commercial interests of the British from the tribal communities.
BEFR came as a response to the reckless expansion of British entrepreneurs into new lands which threatened British political relations with the hill tribes.
After Independence, the Indian government replaced “British subjects” with “Citizen of India”.
The Inner Line separates the tribal-populated hill areas in the Northeast from the plains. To enter and stay for any period in these areas, Indian citizens from other areas need an Inner Line Permit (ILP).
The main aim of ILP system is to prevent settlement of other Indian nationals in the States where ILP regime is prevalent, in order to protect the indigenous/tribal population.
The Adaptation of Laws (Amendment) Order, 2019 extended the ILP regime to Manipur – after Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram where the ILP regime is applicable.