UCC: Naga delegation claims reassurance from Govt on key tribal, Christian concerns in state

Nagaland CM was part of delegation; member says they told Govt a UCC would invalidate the 1960 agreement that governs Naga customary laws, socio-religious practices, land, resources

Uniform Civil Code, Amit Shah, Law Commission, Law Commission of India, Nagaland, Neiphiu Rio, Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, Political Pulse, Indian Express, India news, current affairs

Union Home Minister Amit Shah

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A delegation of Naga leaders that met Union Home Minister Amit Shah has claimed assurance from the government that the Law Commission is considering the idea of excluding the Christian community in the state and “some tribals” from the proposed Uniform Civil Code (UCC) legislation.

The 12-member Naga delegation, led by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, met Shah on Wednesday to talk to him about various concerns of the state, including on the implementation of a UCC and the lack of progress in the Nagaland peace talks.

“We apprised the Home Minister of Article 371 (A), which is applicable to Nagaland and is based on the 16-point agreement signed between the Naga tribes and the Government of India in July 1960. According to this agreement, as well as Article 371 (A), the freedom we exercise in our religious and cultural practices can’t be impinged upon by any Central law passed by Parliament. Only if such a law is also passed by the state Assembly as a resolution, can it become applicable to the state of Nagaland,” said the spokesperson of the Nagaland government and an advisor to the ruling Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP), K G Kenye.

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“The Home Minister assured us that excluding Christians (in Nagaland) and some tribal communities from the scope of a UCC is being considered by the Law Commission,” added Kenye, speaking with The Indian Express. He added that the Naga delegation was “reassured and very happy” with the Union Home Minister’s response.

The 16-point agreement from 1960, based on which Nagaland was conferred the status of a state in December 1963, protects Naga customary laws, socio-religious practices, as well as land and resources.

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“There is a lot of discontent in Nagaland since the Law Commission notification. If a UCC is extended to Nagaland, it brings into question the validity of Article 371 (A), which is a bridge between mainland India and the Naga people,” added Kenye.

He said that in the past, provisions of the Article have not been followed to the letter, especially in terms of use of land and resources in the state. Naga leaders and critics say that despite attempts by several state governments in the past to begin exploration for oil and natural gas in the state by invoking Article 371 (A), the moves have been repeatedly thwarted by the Centre, on the grounds that oil and natural gas are Central subjects.

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Recently, it was by invoking Article 371 (A) that the Nagaland Assembly repealed the Urban Local Bodies Act, 2001, bowing to pressure from tribal bodies in the state. It prompted the State Election Commission to indefinitely postpone municipal elections in the state, which were to take place this May. The case is now being heard in the Supreme Court.