On September 10, SC Jamir, the 95-year-old former Nagaland chief minister, met RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in Delhi. He asked Bhagwat to use his influence with the BJP-led Centre to speed up a settlement of the Naga political issue.
Jamir said Bhagwat mostly listened and promised to raise the matter with authorities. Jamir also argued that the 2015 Framework Agreement contains neither sovereignty nor territorial integration.
What happened
The meeting caused a stir. On 16 September, after a consultation between a Nagaland Assembly committee led by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and the NSCN-IM, NSCN-IM leader V S Atem said Jamir was neither mandated nor authorised to speak on the issue, accusing him of “talking for the sake of barking.”
Fellow leader R H Raising said Jamir was not an advocate of the Naga people and called him “out and out Indian.” The day after, NPF general secretary Achumbemo Kikon described Jamir as “an old man in a hurry”.
The response
On 23 September, the Ao Senden, the apex body of the Ao Naga tribe to which Jamir belongs, condemned the remarks as disparaging and gave the two leaders 15 days to withdraw them, warning it would otherwise take its “own course of action.” It also reaffirmed sovereignty as the sole aim and legitimate aspiration of the Nagas.
It added that the Naga political issue cannot be the sole domain of any individual, group or faction, and that differences should not stop individual Nagas from voicing views. A local body from Ungma village also backed Jamir.
On 6 October, within the deadline, Atem and Raising issued a joint declaration. They said that if their comments hurt the Ao Senden’s sentiments, this was never intended, and that they retracted them.
The retraction is conditional. It apologises for any hurt caused to the Ao Senden but does not say whether the NSCN-IM leaders still dispute Jamir’s right to speak.
The row sits against a long-running backdrop. The NSCN-IM signed a ceasefire with the Centre in 1997 and the Framework Agreement in 2015. Disagreements over a separate Naga flag and constitution and the integration of Naga-inhabited areas still block a final settlement.
Also Read: Sensiari II: Why Mizoram is taking its HIV message back to cinema