Unstable Arunachal

The illusory security of steamroller parliamentary majorities has once again been exposed. It took just 10 days to consign Gegong Apang's...

The illusory security of steamroller parliamentary majorities has once again been exposed. It took just 10 days to consign Gegong Apang8217;s more than nine-tenths majority in the Legislative Assembly and his 19 years as chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh to the history books. But when Apang tendered his resignation on Monday, it was not just his dream of overtaking Jyoti Basu as the country8217;s longest serving chief minister that lay in a shambles; Arunachal Pradesh8217;s experiment in staving off the Northeastern staples 8212; corruption, tribalism, insurgency 8212; too was given a summary burial.

When he assumed charge at the helm in 1980, what he inherited was an unadulterated paradise: a bountiful state with an area larger than Assam8217;s and an insurgency-free population smaller than that of Karol Bagh in New Delhi. It also had the benefit of lessons learnt the hard way in other Northeastern states 8212; a battery of laws sought to prevent exploitation by plainspeople and to safeguard the tribals8217; diverse culturaltraditions.

And yet, over the past two decades development has slowly passed by this other Land of the Five Rivers. The state8217;s hydro-electric and resource-based production potential continues to remain just that as personal aggrandizement dictates a new political class.

The upshot has been an unmitigated disaster: logging endangers Arunachal Pradesh8217;s lush, virgin forests; charges about indigenous fauna and flora being smuggled out fly thick and fast; benami enterprises allegedly flourish under Itanagar8217;s benevolent eye; a myopic handling of the Chakma problem threatens to activate the insurgency virus. Besides the obvious implications for developmental programmes and literacy and health care plans, the resultant stratification in a historically egalitarian society has torn asunder the state8217;s social ethos.

With personal allurements driving upcoming leaders, old tribal loyalties have been reinforced. Indeed, the rebellion against Apang was initiated by Nyishi leaders hailing from the eastern Tirap andChanglang districts who allege that Apang was only catering to the welfare of his fellow Adi tribals and had failed to ensure development. Sadly, it is this legacy of missed opportunities and soured dreams that Apang will be remembered for.

What of the future? With the breakaway Arunachal Congress M, under former minister for forests Mukut Mithi, claiming 24 MLAs in a 60-member House and forming a government with the support of 12 more legislators independents and Congress MLAs, an extended bout of political instability akin to that plaguing nearby Manipur and Meghalaya is on the cards.

Moreover, with shifting legislative alignments, politicians will no doubt remain divided along tribal lines. This does not bode well for a territory coveted by neighbouring China. The time has clearly come for New Delhi to shrug off its post-Nehru neglect of the region and take a more active interest in reviving visions of prosperity in the state.