Naga groups demand resolution of insurgency issue before LS polls

Different Naga organisations on Monday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to resolve the decades-old insurgency issue in Nagaland before the general election, saying it was getting delayed due to the "adamant" position of the Centre.

"During the 2014 Lok Sabha election campaign, the prime minister had promised to solve the Naga political problem within 18 months if the BJP formed the government at the Centre. Now, it's almost 60 months since then and the Nagas are yet to see the formidable leadership of Delhi fulfilling the promise made. We want a solution before the Lok Sabha polls," Yaronsho Ngalung, chairman of the Autonomous District Council, Ukhrul (Manipur), said at a press conference here.

Representatives of the Naga Mothers' Association, Naga Students' Union, Delhi, and a host of civil society organisations said they had submitted a memorandum to Modi over their demands.

The Naga organisations had held a protest march on Saturday demanding immediate political solution to the issue.

"The Naga masses are well informed that the search of model for solution is being dragged due to the adamant position of India (government) in recognising the distinct political identity of the Nagas -- such as, flag, constitution, passport, etc," the memorandum to the prime minister said.

The memorandum pointed out to the demands by the Naga people, led by civil societies, for a political solution before the assembly election in Nagaland last year.

Ram Madhav, the in-charge of the BJP in the Northeast, and R N Ravi, the interlocutor for the Naga peace talks, had promised "election for solution". Although, the party has managed to form governments in Manipur, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and joined the coalition government in Nagaland, the promises have amounted to nothing, it added.

A framework agreement was signed on August 3, 2015, by NSCN-IM general secretary Thuingaleng Muivah and the government interlocutor in the presence of Modi.

The agreement came after over 80 rounds of negotiations spanning 18 years, with the first breakthrough made in 1997 when the ceasefire agreement was sealed after decades of insurgency in Nagaland, which started soon after India's independence in 1947.