Explained: The demand for greater autonomy for Eastern Nagaland districts

The state government’s move is expected to set the ball rolling for further deliberation on the matter.

Why the demand for greater autonomy?

Eastern Nagaland refers to the six eastern districts of the state: Kiphire, Longleng, Mon, Noklak, Shamator, and Tuensang. These districts are home to members of seven tribes — Konyak, Khiamniungan, Chang, Sangtam, Tikhir, Phom, and Yimkhiung — and account for more than 30% of the state’s population. They also account for 20 of the 60 seats in the Assembly.

A demand for the creation of a separate state of Nagaland’s eastern districts has been a long-standing one. It escalated more than a decade ago when the influential Eastern Nagaland People’s Organization (ENPO) submitted a memorandum to the Prime Minister’s Office in November 2010. The group demanded a separate state with special status and provisions owing to a “development deficit” in the region. The lack of development in the region has continued to be the driving force behind the demand for a separate state.

What is the current status of the demand?

The demand flared up again ahead of last year’s Nagaland Legislative Assembly polls, which had taken place in February. As early as August 2022, the ENPO passed a resolution to abstain from participating in the Assembly polls unless the separate state demand was met. However, weeks before the state went into polls, the ENPO withdrew the boycott call, citing an assurance from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs that a “mutually agreed solution” would be reached and implemented after the election process.

Since then, there have been several rounds of meetings between the ENPO and the Union Home Ministry. Early this year, the Centre sent a draft Memorandum of Settlement to the Nagaland government and sought its comments. So far, this matter has been halted at this stage.

As a result, the ENPO had called for a boycott of the Lok Sabha elections unless the matter was resolved before the polls and there was close to no voting in the six districts on voting day in April. Both the state government and the ENPO had pointed fingers at each other for the hold-up. The ENPO accused the state government of sitting on the matter and the state government claimed that it had sought deliberations with the ENPO and legislators from the region and that the matter had halted at that stage.

However, last week, Nagaland Parliamentary Affairs Minister K G Kenye said discussions with the ENPO and ENLU (Eastern Nagaland Legislators’ Union) took place in the last few weeks following which the government was ready to forward its case to the Centre.

What kind of arrangement for autonomy is being discussed?

According to sources who have been part of meetings between the ENPO and Centre, including a tripartite meeting with representatives of the Nagaland government, the discussions have been towards a “unique arrangement” called ‘Frontier Naga Territory’ within Nagaland with a separate legislature, and executive and financial powers.

Last week, Nagaland Minister Kenye said the arrangement the state government had discussed was still centred in the state capital Kohima with a regional council based in a headquarter in East Nagaland with power over local issues. He stated that it would be in line with the provision of a regional council for this region that is already contained within Article 371 (A) of the Constitution. However, ENPO President A Chingmak Chang told The Indian Express that ENPO was not privy to the Centre’s proposal sent to the state government and would consider it only after the Centre sends it directly to the ENPO.

“The proposal that was sent was sent purely for the state government for its comments. It is up to the state government to send whatever it wants. Once it submits its comments, then the Ministry of Home Affairs can invite the stakeholders and that’s when we will discuss the issue. We will discuss only directly with the Centre, not the state government,” he said.

What is the provision for a regional council of Eastern Nagaland?

The state of Nagaland was carved out of Assam in 1963 as a result of 16 16-point agreement between the Naga People’s Convention and the Union of India. Special constitutional provision had been provided under Article 371(A) to the new state which includes provisions for the protection of Naga customary law. Both the agreement and Article 371(A) have a provision for the then undivided Tuensang district – which later became the six present districts – to be governed directly by the Governor owing to its relative backwardness. The agreement provided for this arrangement for 10 years “until such time when the tribes in the Tuensang District are capable of shouldering more responsibility of advance system of administration in other parts of the Nagaland.”

Article 371(A) provided for a regional council for the Tuensang district consisting of 35 members, which would nominate members to the legislative assembly. Later this system was done away with at the end of 10 years in 1973 and it was only then that this region participated for the first time in the state legislative assembly elections.