Bhupen Goswami
Nagaland, the most insurgent-hit state in the Northeast, is in its last phase of peace process for the last 23 years. In Nagaland, the solution to the Naga problem has gained momentum as the central government has indicated to sign the deal. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the state government has indirectly declared a high alert across the state as soon as the date fixed by the central government for the Naga peace agreement comes near 31 August.The Director General of Police (DGP) on Friday canceled the leave of all policemen and asked them to go on duty immediately. According to official sources, the district deputy commissioners and administrative officers of all the northeastern states have been instructed not to leave their district till further orders. The police department has canceled the leave of all except the policemen who are on medical and maternity leave.The Chief Commissioner’s Office has issued a wireless message directing that policemen may take leave on getting written permission by the Chief Secretary through the State Commissioner in case it is extremely mandatory. On the other hand, all the student organizations of the northeastern state have appealed to the central government not to make any kind of regional change till the decades-old Naga political problem is solved.Even today the people of Manipur, Assam, Arunachal and Mizoram protested over the Naga peace settlement. A statement issued by the student union said, “We welcome the steps taken by the governments to resolve the Naga issue.However, we also want to clarify that till the resolution of the decades-old Naga conflict in Nagaland, if the jurisdiction of the state is changed or there is any kind of administrative, political or other interference, then the origin of Arunachal Pradesh Residents will oppose any such attempt. It mentions that “the National Socialist Council of Nagaland- (NSCN) (Issac-Muivah) is holding peace talks with the Center.The NSCN IM has said that the Naga problem cannot be resolved in a better way without discussing separate flag and constitution issues. The Center has clarified that these two issues were not included in the framework agreement between the Center and the organization in August 2015. Although the government is firm on the agreement, it will not look into the issue of flags and constitution. On the other hand, about two months ago in Manipur, BJP CM N Biren Singh had warned the central government of his own party.Biren Singh had threatened to resign before reaching any conclusion of the ongoing talks between the Naga factions and the central government. The CM of Manipur has said that if there is any compromise with the territorial integrity of the state, he will be forced to resign. Then in such a situation the reaction in the state will also be out of control.Biren Singh had said that if our voice is not heard on the matter of Naga peace agreement, we will have to take tough decisions. The CM had said, “If the central government does not take our opinion on this matter, then we will have to leave our posts ourselves.” After this, he has also sought to increase security in the state, citing the current state of the state. If anything happens in the state due to peace talks with the currently ongoing Naga groups, it will be impossible to stop people’s reaction, he said.Meanwhile, the Center has decided to conclude decades-old peace talks with NSCN (IM) and NNPG (Naga National Political Groups) in Nagaland by September this year. For this, a round of marathon meetings organized between the collective leadership of NSCN (I-M) and the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Naga Dialogue. Ravi, who is also the Governor of Nagaland.According to official sources, the Prime Minister’s Office has set a September deadline for the final settlement of all Naga political issues. However, the date and place of signing of the historic peace agreement has been finalized. Prime Minister’s official sources said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will announce the historic Naga peace talks tomorrow at 74 Independence Day celebrations.According to official sources in the Ministry of Home Affairs, the dispute over NRC’s exercise in Assam is not taking its name. Meanwhile, neighboring Nagaland has also decided to launch its own local version of NRC..
