Explained: The demand for greater autonomy for Eastern Nagaland districts

The authorities government’s determination is expected to acceptable the shot rolling for further deliberation connected the matter.

Why the request for greater autonomy?

Eastern Nagaland refers to the six eastbound districts of the state: Kiphire, Longleng, Mon, Noklak, Shamator, and Tuensang. These districts are location to members of 7 tribes — Konyak, Khiamniungan, Chang, Sangtam, Tikhir, Phom, and Yimkhiung — and relationship for much than 30% of the state’s population. They besides relationship for 20 of the 60 seats successful the Assembly.

A request for the instauration of a abstracted authorities of Nagaland’s eastbound districts has been a long-standing one. It escalated much than a decennary agone erstwhile the influential Eastern Nagaland People’s Organization (ENPO) submitted a memorandum to the Prime Minister’s Office successful November 2010. The radical demanded a abstracted authorities with peculiar presumption and provisions owing to a “development deficit” successful the region. The deficiency of improvement successful the portion has continued to beryllium the driving unit down the request for a abstracted state.

What is the existent presumption of the demand?

The request flared up again up of past year’s Nagaland Legislative Assembly polls, which had taken spot successful February. As aboriginal arsenic August 2022, the ENPO passed a solution to abstain from participating successful the Assembly polls unless the abstracted authorities request was met. However, weeks earlier the authorities went into polls, the ENPO withdrew the boycott call, citing an assurance from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs that a “mutually agreed solution” would beryllium reached and implemented aft the predetermination process.

Since then, determination person been respective rounds of meetings betwixt the ENPO and the Union Home Ministry. Early this year, the Centre sent a draught Memorandum of Settlement to the Nagaland authorities and sought its comments. So far, this substance has been halted astatine this stage.

As a result, the ENPO had called for a boycott of the Lok Sabha elections unless the substance was resolved earlier the polls and determination was adjacent to nary voting successful the six districts connected voting time successful April. Both the authorities authorities and the ENPO had pointed fingers astatine each different for the hold-up. The ENPO accused the authorities authorities of sitting connected the substance and the authorities authorities claimed that it had sought deliberations with the ENPO and legislators from the portion and that the substance had halted astatine that stage.

However, past week, Nagaland Parliamentary Affairs Minister K G Kenye said discussions with the ENPO and ENLU (Eastern Nagaland Legislators’ Union) took spot successful the past fewer weeks pursuing which the authorities was acceptable to guardant its lawsuit to the Centre.

What benignant of statement for autonomy is being discussed?

According to sources who person been portion of meetings betwixt the ENPO and Centre, including a tripartite gathering with representatives of the Nagaland government, the discussions person been towards a “unique arrangement” called ‘Frontier Naga Territory’ wrong Nagaland with a abstracted legislature, and enforcement and fiscal powers.

Last week, Nagaland Minister Kenye said the statement the authorities authorities had discussed was inactive centred successful the authorities superior Kohima with a determination assembly based successful a headquarter successful East Nagaland with powerfulness implicit section issues. He stated that it would beryllium successful enactment with the proviso of a determination assembly for this portion that is already contained wrong Article 371 (A) of the Constitution. However, ENPO President A Chingmak Chang told The Indian Express that ENPO was not privy to the Centre’s connection sent to the authorities authorities and would see it lone aft the Centre sends it straight to the ENPO.

“The connection that was sent was sent purely for the authorities authorities for its comments. It is up to the authorities authorities to nonstop immoderate it wants. Once it submits its comments, past the Ministry of Home Affairs tin invitation the stakeholders and that’s erstwhile we volition sermon the issue. We volition sermon lone straight with the Centre, not the authorities government,” helium said.

What is the proviso for a determination assembly of Eastern Nagaland?

The authorities of Nagaland was carved retired of Assam successful 1963 arsenic a effect of 16 16-point statement betwixt the Naga People’s Convention and the Union of India. Special law proviso had been provided nether Article 371(A) to the caller authorities which includes provisions for the extortion of Naga customary law. Both the statement and Article 371(A) person a proviso for the past undivided Tuensang territory – which aboriginal became the six contiguous districts – to beryllium governed straight by the Governor owing to its comparative backwardness. The statement provided for this statement for 10 years “until specified clip erstwhile the tribes successful the Tuensang District are susceptible of shouldering much work of beforehand strategy of medication successful different parts of the Nagaland.”

Article 371(A) provided for a determination assembly for the Tuensang territory consisting of 35 members, which would nominate members to the legislative assembly. Later this strategy was done distant with astatine the extremity of 10 years successful 1973 and it was lone past that this portion participated for the archetypal clip successful the authorities legislative assembly elections.