Kohima, Jan 18 (IANS) Hours after the dates for Assembly polls in three northeastern states, including Nagaland were announced, the influential Konyak Union on Wednesday, rejecting the state government appeal, reiterated to boycott the February 27 elections until the Central government grants the demand for a separate ‘Frontier Nagaland’ state.
Claiming that the six districts — Mon, Tuensang, Kiphire, Longleng, Noklak and Shamator — have been neglected for years, the influential Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation (ENPO) has been demanding a separate state since 2010.
A statement of the Konyak Union, on Wednesday evening said that in its emergency meeting, it resolved and reiterated to remain steadfast and firm to the August 26, 2022 ENPO resolution to abstain from participating in the 2023 Nagaland Assembly election until the Centre grant the demand of a separate statehood befittingly.
“The house further resolved to permanently expel those individuals filing nomination to participate in the Assembly election from the Konyak soil and the village of the person filing nomination shall be held solely responsible. The KU has also fully endorsed and empowered the Konyak Nyupu Sheko Khong (KNSK), Konyak Students’ Union (KSU) and Village Councils to fully implement and act upon the resolution,” the statement said.
The meeting was attended and signed by the chairman of Konyak villages, apex civil society organisations, Konyak Union Executive Council members, KU advisory board members, senior leaders and intellectuals, the statement added.
The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) government, led by Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) and including the Bharatiya Janata Party, had on a number of occasions asked the ENPO to reconsider their demand for a separate state and not to boycott the Assembly elections.
Nagaland state Congress President K. Therie said that his party strongly opposed the demand for the creation of separate state of ‘Frontier Nagaland’, raised by the ENPO.
“We do not want further division of Nagaland. However, the areas falling under the proposed ‘Frontier Nagaland’ are backward due to the misgovernance of the present government,” Therie told IANS.
ENPO Secretary W. Manwang Konyak said that they are firm on boycotting the assembly polls if their demand is not met before the elections.
To a question about the Nagaland government’s appeal, the ENPO leader told IANS: “We are waiting for the response from the Central government. The Union Home Minister will again come to Tuensang in Nagaland at the end of this month and is expected to visit our region to discuss the separate state demand.”
–IANS
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