Newmai News Network
Senapati | January 19
The United Naga Council (UNC) has demanded immediate “withdrawal and roll back” of the term “cabinet meeting at Kamjong on January 15, 2021" from the Government’s cabinet record(s), terming it as a “Trojan Horse to the people’s land, identity and history.”
The UNC also cautioned that it would take its "own course of action" if the Manipur Government fails to do so.
The matter pertains to the creation of seven new districts by the then Congress government in 2016 which was done by bifurcating seven districts—two in the valley and five in the hills.
The UNC which is the apex body of Nagas of Manipur had been strongly opposed the move and had since been engaging in tripartite talks with the state government and Centre on the matter.
In a press release on Tuesday, the UNC informed that a ‘presidential council’ meeting was held on January 18 following the Cabinet meeting on January 15.
It said that matters relating to the ‘district creation issue’ were read out during the meeting which was attended by all presidents of the council’s federating units, former UNC presidents, executives of All Naga Students' Association, Manipur (ANSAM), Naga Women Union (NWU) and NPMHR (South).
The statement recalled that the Government of Manipur and the Naga people had signed the 4 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) in 1981, 1992, 1996 and 1998 and later on, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India intervened in 2011, on the premise that the Naga people would be consulted in respect of new district creation.
However, the Government of Manipur had failed to uphold the MoUs in letter and spirit and forcefully created 7 new districts on December 8, 2016, following which the Naga people had imposed 139 days of economic blockade, it stated.
"Aftermath of the imposed creation, several rounds of tripartite talks were held among the Government of India, Government of Manipur and United Naga Council (UNC) to settle the issue of 7 new district creation but it still remains unsettled," it added.
According to the statement, the UNC had issued repeated "reminders and words" to the BJP led Government not to provoke and undermine the sentiments of the Naga people, particularly with regard to the "imposed district issue" as the matter is still lying pending. It also said that the last round of tripartite talks was scheduled for July 10, 2019, but was deferred " due to the request of the Government of India.”
As such, it said that the recent cabinet meeting at Kamjong in the pretext of ‘Go to Village or Go to Hill’ mission has been a “Trojan Horse to the people’s land, identity and history” while adding that, "A popular government deceiving its citizens and people is an act of treachery and a serious crime."
Further demanding that the aforementioned term be removed from the Cabinet record, the UNC stated that it would “not tolerate any such mischievous designs at any cost.”
