SENAPATI, JUNE 2 (MexN): The Senapati District Students’ Association (SDSA), in coordination with its five federating units, enforced a shutdown of government offices and bank services across Senapati district on Monday as part of a 48-hour office picketing agitation called by the All Naga Students’ Association, Manipur (ANSAM).
Government departments including the Deputy Commissioner’s office, DRDA, ADC, and all major banks such as SBI, UCO Bank, Punjab National Bank, IDBI, Central Bank of India, and Bank of India were locked by members of the SDSA and federating student unions—Mao Students' Union (MSU), Maram Students' Union (MKS), Poumai Naga Students' Union (PNTM), Thangal Students' Union (TAJ), and Zeliangrong Students' Union, Senapati Zone (ZSU-SZ).
The protest, which will continue till June 3, is in response to the Government of India’s recent scrapping of the Free Movement Regime (FMR) and the construction of border fencing along the Indo-Myanmar boundary, which the student groups claim undermines the rights and unity of the Naga people.
In a statement, the SDSA said the picketing was being “strictly implemented” in solidarity with Naga communities affected across the border. They appealed to all departments in Senapati to refrain from operating during the agitation, except those engaged in flood relief or emergency work.
The protest was held under banners declaring, among others: “Nagas are one—No fencing in between,” “Nagas and their lands are inseparable,” and “Respect our rights & history, Modiji keep your words.”
Meanwhile, in Tamenglong district headquarters, ANSAM President drew international attention to what he called the “sinister policy” of the Government of India. Addressing the media, he appealed to the United Nations, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization, and other self-determined nations to take note of India’s actions.
“The scrapping of the FMR and the imposed fencing project in our ancestral lands is a direct challenge to the birthrights of the Naga people,” he said. “It contradicts official agreements signed between the Government of India and the Naga nation, including the Framework Agreement.”
He called on the Government of India to revoke the FMR decision and halt border fencing activities, urging Delhi to honor its commitments and uphold democratic values. “Nagas are one and will live together as one,” he said, adding that the Naga student movement will “march forward and overcome in the name of Christ for Nagalim.”
The shutdown is part of a wider agitation supported by the United Naga Council (UNC), Naga Women Union, and various tribal bodies across the Naga hill districts of Manipur.
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