DIMAPUR, SEPTEMBER 22 (MExN): The United Naga Tribes Association of Border Areas (UNTABA) today termed the recent statement by Ram Prasad Sharma an MP (BJP) from Assam; on the Assam-Nagaland boundary issue as unfortunate and “outlandish.”
A press note from the UNTABA said that “it is not only an embarrassment for the Central as well as Assam Government but also inviting contempt of Court since the issue is under active litigation process and is subjudiced.” It asked that “no individuals from both the states should involve in uttering such unsubstantiated and cheap political rhetoric.”
The UNTABA stated that in as much as the traditional, ancestral and historical boundary between Assam and Nagaland is concerned, “there is no dispute since it was clearly demarcated by the Kings themselves and maintain as such throughout the centuries and it cannot be challenged by any individual or any group of people.” Regarding the ongoing Indo-Naga political talk, the UNTABA stated that the Naga people are expectantly awaiting the sincerity of commitment on the part of the Government of India to fulfill its past commitments. It further appreciated the “unflinching efforts of the collective leadership of NSCN (IM) in trying to bring about the amalgamation of the Naga people and its lands as its ‘legitimate right’ in the subsequent political settlement.”
