Nagaland: How football keeps alive memories of 2 youths killed by police

In the 2006 movie Namesake, there is a poignant moment when Kal Penn, playing the role of Gogol Ganguli, asks Irrfan Khan, playing the role of Ashoke Ganguli (his father) about why he named him after a “paranoid, suicidal, friendless, depressed” Russian author Nikolai Gogol. Apart from pointing out that Gogol, the author, was also a genius, Ashoke narrates how he nearly died in a train crash and how he had been reading Gogol that fateful night. After being told the origin of his name, Gogol Ganguli asks: “Baba, is that what you think of when you think of me? Do I remind you of that night?” To which Ashoke Ganguli responds: “Not at all. You remind me of everything that followed. Every day since then has been a gift… Gogol.”

Now, Namesake may have no connection to a football tournament in Nagaland, but the line “remind me of everything that followed” will resonate with 62-year-old Dr Vizovol Mekro, one of Nagaland’s most renowned geologists. A little over 37 years ago, Mekro witnessed something that changed his life forever, but it could have been so much worse. 

Just ask the family of Kekuojalie Sachü and Vikhozo Yhoshü. 

March 20, 1986: Shot dead for speaking out

Mekro has come a long way, but he remembers March 20 clearly. In a conversation with EastMojo, Mekro recounted that the Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) had informed school, college and university students to join a peaceful rally near the old Assembly secretariat in Kohima to protest against the extension of the Disturbed Area Belt (DAB) under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) along the Indo-Burma (now Myanmar) border from 5km to 20km and the induction of Indian Police Service (IPS) cadres into the state of Nagaland.

“Back then, I did not understand about the IPS induction, but I was very clear about the extension of AFSPA along the border. The lives of villagers under AFSPA were hard, so I joined the protest, a day after my cousin and I hiked to Pulie Badze in Jotsoma (about 10 km from Kohima town),” he recalled.

Then in his mid-twenties, Mekro was pursuing a Masters of Science in Geology as a student of the North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) Kohima branch at the Kohima Science College in Jotsoma.

“I was surprised to see many armed Nagaland police in their riot gear. I never imagined that things would turn violent. There was a state Assembly session that day, so we were asked to stay put as the NSF officials had gone to meet the chief minister and other legislators. But suddenly, the police asked the students to disperse and began to lathi-charge, fired tear gas, smoke grenades and opened up firing,” he shared.

Amid the chaos, two students—Kekuojalie Sachü and Vikhozo Yhoshü—were killed in the firing, and Mekro was not left unscathed. This was to be his “Gogol” moment, so to speak. 

Mekro suffered a bullet shot below his right knee. The young geologist vividly remembers sitting on the road, unable to walk, watching blood ooze from his leg.

“As I sat bleeding, a few friends rushed to help me, carried me to a car, and drove me to the hospital. Along the way, the police intercepted us but we reached the hospital, where they amputated my leg,” he recalled.

The state government had then announced ex-gratia for the two deceased and Rs 20,000 for those injured. “About 50 of us were injured. I did not take the money. How can we take the money when they shoot unarmed students and give us money as compensation?” he said.

Mekro went to Delhi to receive further treatment, after which he returned to Nagaland to resume his studies. While some sympathised that his life was “gone”, he was confident that it was “far from finished”. Despite the pain in his leg, Mekro, who lived in the campus hostel, started attending regular classes and walked to the college.

“With the prosthetic leg, every step that I took became torture for me. So, the then Head of Department (HoD) decided to teach me from my hostel room and I managed to complete my education. I then joined the college as a teacher, completed my Ph. D., and performed regular duties where I took students for fieldwork. After 25 years, I was promoted and transferred to head the Phek Government College for five years before I retired last year,” he shared.

Grateful to all the people who helped him recover from the pain, the 62-year-old said, “A few of us still meet up to recollect the incident and share our memories like we are war veterans.”

The Yhoshü family and Sachü family has far more painful memories. 

Memory of a beloved

Vikhozo Yhoshü, a student of Mezhür School was just 14 when he was killed in 1986. His younger brother Keneingutuo Yhoshü, 45, hardly has any memory of his brother and his sister, Kelevino Yhoshü, 37, who was yet to be born, only ever heard about him.

Speaking to EastMojo, Kelevino shared how their mother broke into tears each time she remembered her son’s death. “My mother passed away in April this year. Before her death, each time she tried to recollect about my brother, she emotionally struggled to narrate the incident as she was traumatised. But I remember how she told us that my brother had joined a peaceful rally above our home and was killed by the police. My mother’s grief over my brother’s death was compounded by the memory of seeing his dead body on the side of the road,” she shared. Their father had passed away in 2012.

Vikhozo, the eldest of eight siblings, was a bright student who wanted to become a doctor and give his parents a comfortable life. His family remembers him fondly.

As a football tournament is held annually to remember her brother, she said, “This is something important for my mother and us. She told us even in her absence we should never miss attending the football event. We are very grateful to the Angami Students’ Union (ASU) and the Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) for honouring our dear brother.”

Kekuojalie Sachü, lovingly known as Aja by his family and friends, was 20 when he was killed. His younger brother, Zakievo-o Sachü (51) told EastMojo that Kekuojalie inspired their family.

“Through his sacrifice, we are motivated to follow in his footsteps and give our best when called for. Whenever we remember our late brother, though our hearts still mourn, we beam with pride for the legacy he left behind. A middle-class unknown family became known to many because of him,” the student martyr’s younger brother said.

He is remembered as a daring, courageous and honest person who stood for what was right and true. For the family, the annual football tournament is a reminder that Kekuojalie continues to live in their hearts forever. 

“We are always out of words whenever the Angami Students’ Union and the Naga Students’ Federation shower us with their love, support and kindness. While we have nothing to offer, our hearts are always filled with gratitude for them as they keep the memories of our loving brother alive. The annual football tournament is always a time of mixed emotions for the family. It is a time when our eyes fill with tears of joy, sorrow and pride. A time when we feel his presence, giving us the assurance that he is always with us and the courage to move forward,” he added.

Once a football player, Dr. Vizovol Mekro no longer played after his injury. But he lauded the ASU for organising the tournament annually in memory of the martyrs and providing a platform to young footballers.

“As Nagas, we should stand up for each other, irrespective of tribe or village. I acknowledge ASU for remembering the sacrifices made by the students, organising a tournament for football lovers and players, and promoting the sport. The government is doing a lot, but it needs to do more to promote sports in the state,” he said.

Mekro also urged Nagas to be courageous and face whatever comes their way. In this regard, he hoped that the government would never do such “unimaginable” things again.

A history of a tournament

As per the records of the ASU, the two students—Lt Kekuojalie Sachü and Lt Vikhozo Yhoshü were victims of indiscriminate firing of the Nagaland Armed Police on March 20, 1986, while they were on the duty call of the NSF’s fight for a ‘just and rightful cause’. Ever since that day, March 20 has been marked as the NSF Martyrs’ Day to honour and respect their sacrifices.

“With a deep sense of attachment to the departed souls, ASU started the herculean task of organising the Memorial Trophy. Starting off in the 1980s till 1991, the Memorial Trophy was organised and played more confined within the Angami student fraternity. From 1992 onwards, at the behest of the NSF and the general public, and also to bestow the Memorial Trophy in a wider perspective, the trophy was converted into an open tournament with the nomenclature Open NSF Martyrs’ Trophy,” ASU president Khriesamhalie David Mere told EastMojo.

The first officially recognised Martyrs’ Trophy edition was played in 1992 when the Tangkhul Students’ Union (TKS) from Ukhrul district won the title. In the following three editions, the All Zeliangrong Students’ Union (AZSU) won the trophy in 1993, 1994 and 1995, earning permanent ownership of the trophy.

After a gap of two years, ASU procured a new trophy for the tournament and rechristened it as ‘NSF Martyrs’ Memorial Trophy’ in 1998. This marked the first edition of the present tournament with the Kohima Village Students’ Union (KVSU) holding the title as the champions of the first edition of the trophy.

The biennial tournament was played in 1998 and 2000 after which it became an annual tournament in 2002. The ongoing NSF Martyrs’ Memorial Trophy at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Kohima is the 23rd edition of the trophy.

A total of 34 teams, including two from Manipur, are vying for the prestigious championship trophy. In the past years, the tournament also had the participation of teams from other northeastern states, including Shillong Lajong FC from Meghalaya.

And perhaps, the most interesting point is that even teams from Nagaland Police had been participating in the tournament until a few years ago. They won the trophy five times; in 2007, 2008, 2010, 2013 and 2016.

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