Morung Express News
Dimapur | November 26
With barely four days to go for the Hornbill Festival, there was a meeting between the Chief Minister and frontal organisations of the eastern Nagaland bloc on November 26. The closed-door meeting at the Nagaland Police Complex in Chümoukedima was brokered by the Eastern Nagaland Legislature Union (ENLU). It had in attendance the Deputy Chief Minister, Y Patton and other Cabinet Ministers and members of the ENLU, besides the CM.
From the eastern bloc, there was the Eastern Nagaland Peoples' Organisation (ENPO), Eastern Nagaland Women Organisation (ENWO), Eastern Nagaland Students' Federation (ENSF) and the top tribal bodies of the Chang, Khiamniungan, Konyak, Phom, Tikhir, Sangtam and Yimkhiung.
In the words of the Nagaland Chief Secretary, J Alam, the meeting was called to discuss about the ENPO resolution not to participate in the Hornbill Festival, this year. “We have made a request to the ENPO and all the tribal hohos to reconsider their decision. They heard us but they said that they cannot decide here,” Alam said he came out of the meeting hall.
The ENPO had adopted a resolution on October 16 to boycott the annual state Festival as part of the ENPO’s movement for a separate state. Earlier in August, it had also resolved to boycott Parliamentary as well as state Assembly elections. However, this topic did not come up in the discussions, he said.
According to Alam, the state government further made an appeal to allow those, who are interested to participate in the Hornbill, should be allowed to. “But they have not reacted yet. They have only reiterated their (boycott) resolution,” he added.
Besides the Chief Secretary (CS), none of the legislators agreed to comment on what transpired at the meeting. The CM and Deputy CM redirected journalists to speak to the CS, when they were approached for comment on the matter. “No comment” was the response from the ENLU Convenor, Health & Family Welfare Minister, S Pangnyu Phom.
The Presidents of the ENPO and ENSF also declined to comment.
Meanwhile, other sources said that the ENPO stuck to its decision to boycott.
Today’s meeting was organised on the invitation of the CM. It was preceded by a similar meeting, also brokered by the ENLU, on November 22, wherein the ENPO, ENWO and ENSF were invited to a seating with MLA, Noke Wangnao.
