Kohima: As the long-standing Naga political issue remains unresolved, the Nagaland government is cautiously optimistic about finding a solution in 2025.
Senior minister and government spokesperson K G Kenye expressed the state’s hope for progress as negotiations continue between the Centre and Naga groups.
“We are keeping our fingers crossed,” Kenye told PTI, acknowledging media reports that Naga groups had recently traveled to Delhi for talks with the Centre. He also mentioned that the last consultative meeting between the state government and Naga civil society organizations took place in September, after which the Union government invited the groups for further discussions.
While Kenye was unaware of the outcome of the talks, he noted that developments had occurred, though both sides agreed to withhold details for the time being. “We have seen that the Centre’s interlocutor, A K Mishra, recently visited NSCN-IM general secretary Th Muivah at his camp,” he added. Mishra had been in Nagaland to hold talks with the Eastern Nagaland Peoples’ Organisation (ENPO) regarding its demand for the creation of a Frontier Nagaland Territory (FNT), comprising six districts.
The senior minister also addressed concerns about NSCN-IM supremo Muivah’s statement that he would return to the jungles if no positive progress was made in the talks.
Kenye explained that the meeting between Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and Union Home Minister Amit Shah aimed to inform Shah about the growing restiveness among the people and to assess the status of the dialogue. He emphasized that Muivah’s statement could simply be a tactic to assert the outfit’s position and draw attention to the matter.
The NSCN-IM has consistently stated that the framework agreement signed with the central government in 2015 is the “only acceptable basis” for resolving the Naga political issue.
This agreement followed over 80 rounds of negotiations, with the ceasefire agreement reached in 1997 after decades of insurgency in Nagaland. In addition to the framework agreement, the Centre also signed an Agreed Position with the Naga National Political Groups (NNPGs) in December 2017.
However, despite these efforts, a final resolution remains elusive, largely due to the government’s reluctance to accept NSCN-IM’s demand for a separate flag and constitution, which has been a major sticking point.
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