Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, has already reached New Delhi on Saturday, for the “crucial meet” with the Union Home Minister. Meanwhile, Nagaland deputy chief minister Y Patton who is already in Delhi has met the visiting ENPO leaders.
By Imna Longchar, TFM Nagaland Correspondent
On the invitation of the Union Home Minister Amit Shah, an 11 member-delegation representing Eastern Nagaland headed for the National Capital, New Delhi on Saturday to discuss the issue of Eastern Nagaland People’s Organization (ENPO) demand for a separate state.
The 11 member-delegations is led by ENPO president R Tsapikiu Sangtam that includes former Lok Sabha member W Wangyuh Konyak, and two times MP from Nagaland K Asungba Sangtam.
Sources also informed this correspondent that Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, has already reached New Delhi on Saturday, for the “crucial meet” with the Union Home Minister. Meanwhile, Nagaland deputy chief minister Y Patton who is already in Delhi has met the visiting ENPO leaders.
Neiphiu Rio on November 26 has met the representatives of the seven tribal apex bodies of ENPO at a consultative meeting held at Rhododendron Hall, Police Complex, Chumoukedima. The meeting discussed issues related to the stands of the ENPO. The ENPO had asked all the 20 MLAs from their respective constituencies in Eastern Nagaland to resign from their seats.
In another meeting held on November 28 at the venue of the Hornbill Festival, Naga Heritage Village, Kisama, Kohima, the Nagaland chief minister made an appeal to the ENPO and the other tribes under its jurisdiction to let them participate in the Hornbill Festival by allowing their cultural troupes to join the celebration.
It was also informed that in the state cabinet meet, the various grievances raised by the ENPO and tribal hohos of the respective tribes with regard to the cultural troupes at the Hornbill Festival 2022 have been addressed by the Nagaland state government by providing necessary additional facilities.
Though the Nagaland government had on November 26 tried its best to convince the tribes of the seven districts of the Eastern Nagaland to revoke their decision to “boycott” the Hornbill Festival, it was stated that the “closed-door” meet could not yield any positive outcome.
Meanwhile, the Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio had earlier relayed to the ENPO that granting statehood lies with the government of India and not with the Nagaland government or with the citizens of Nagaland.
The chief minister had said that Nagaland government has already submitted its recommendation on granting “Autonomous Region” status to the ENPO area to the government of India. Had made it clear that anything “beyond” this is outside the domain of the Nagaland government. Rio has made known that the Nagaland government had never objected to the demand of a “separate state” of the ENPO people and added that his party, the NDPP stands in support of the demand.