NNC President Adinno Phizo addressing the 63rd Naga Plebiscite Day on May 16, 2013. (Morung File Photo)
Morung Express News
Dimapur/Kohima | October 8
President of the Naga National Council (NNC), Adinno Phizo, passed away at a private hospital in Kohima on October 8. She was in her 90s.
According to preliminary information, Adinno died at Bethel Medical Centre at around 7 PM. Details on the cause of death and whether she had been undergoing prolonged treatment at the facility were not immediately available.
Adinno was the eldest daughter of A Z Phizo, considered ‘father of the Naga nationalist movement.’
Following the death of A Z Phizo in London on April 30, 1990 in London, Adinno was chosen as Acting President of the NNC. She was subsequently formally elected president at the NNC General Meeting held at Kohima Village Hall on May 12, 1990.
After more than five decades away from Nagaland, Adinno returned to the State in April 2013, accompanying the mortal remains of her brother, Kevilevor Phizo, who had died abroad.
“We are returning to our beloved homeland, after 50 years for me, and my dear brother Kevilevor is coming home to rest after 46 years,” she had said at the time.
Adinno's public appearances had become limited in recent years. However, she continued to issue messages on matters concerning the Naga political movement.
In a written message for the NNC's observance of the 76th Naga Voluntary Plebiscite Day at Peace Hall, Chedema, near Kohima, on May 16, 2026, Adinno called upon Nagas “to uphold the historical truth, remain resolute and dedicated in our democratic fight against occupation.”
“History is on our side. We have nothing to fear or be discouraged. In unity with one voice, we should stand by the position established by our grandfathers and fathers,” she stated.
In the message, she maintained that May 16 marked the day Nagas had “firmly asserted the independent status of Nagaland through a voluntary plebiscite.
On the May 16, 1951 plebiscite, Adinno stated that it was conducted under the leadership of Phizo, then NNC president, in Kohima in the presence of an Indian observer, with 99.9% support for the Naga position.
“Our's is an established nation by right of independence declaration and irrefutable plebiscite mandate,” she had stated.
Further details on her death and funeral arrangements are awaited.
