HT Correspondent
DIMAPUR, June 3: The Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC) on Friday said ruling Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) MLA Imkong L Imchen’s statement that Assam chief minister and North East Democratic Alliance convener Himanta Biswa Sarma asserted that there is sufficient room for accommodating the NSCN (IM)’s demand for Naga flag and constitution in any settlement to the Naga issue has raised new confusion in the minds of the people.
The statement must be clarified clearly before the people to clear the confusion caused, NPCC president K Therie said in a release.
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“He (Sarma) was quite positive about the flag and constitution demand of the NSCN (IM). The way he explained I was quite satisfied,” Imchen told a local newspaper. He also said the Assam CM was quite positive that a settlement will arrive sooner than later.
Imchen, however, said Sarma will not be directly involved in the negotiations. “We require his good office’s intervention, especially as the NEDA convener,” he said.
Sarma met the core committee on Naga political issue, led by its convener and Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio, behind closed doors at Chumukedima police complex here on Thursday evening.
Therie said it looks like the Naga flag and constitution are tailed with competencies according to Imchen. He said Imchen, who recently joined the NDPP from the Naga People’s Front, also admitted that he has not read the competencies.
“We demand competencies to be made transparent if they are likely to impact Nagaland state boundaries and Nagaland people. We want to make it clear to negotiating parties that Congress will not support blindly,” the state Pradesh Congress chief said.
Therie said Union Home minister Amit Shah and Nagaland BJP president Temjen Imna Along have made the government of India’s stand clear on the issue and there is no change in the Centre’s stand.
When the Union Home minister himself has made the stand of the government of India clear on the issue, how can the NEDA convener give such an assurance, Therie asked.
“If there is room for accommodating these demands then what is withholding the government of India from implementing the solution?” he further asked.
