Naganation.com

Dimapur, May 11: Expressing serious concern over the deteriorating law and order situation in the State owing to stepped up factional violence, especially in and around Dimapur, Nagaland Home Minister, Imkong L. Imchen, Sunday appealed to all groups to stop all kinds of killings, kidnappings and extortions.
Addressing a press conference at Hotel Saramati here, Imchen said, “This gun culture and killing of Nagas by Nagas is required to be contained in the highest form by all organizations and individuals”. He said fratricidal killings had crossed all limits of imagination and therefore, it was time to stop the fighting “without any argument”.The minister said the Naga tribes must regard themselves as members of a football team and put in their efforts to achieve their best destiny. He said one should not think of himself only because the imagination or policy of domination by a single tribe or more to cover the rest of the Naga tribes was neither desirable nor achievable. In this regard, he called upon all the tribes to play a constructive role in order to ensure a harmonious team combination and subsequently achieve the desired objective of the Nagas.
Asserting that the Naga cause with more than 60 years of history cannot be simply thrown away to a “barrel of gun”, Imchen reminded that the Nagas also had the “barrel of peace which I trust will succeed over the barrel of gun”.
“The 1951 Naga plebiscite has mandated for a suffering Naga nation but it has never given mandate to use AK 47 on the Nagas,” the minister said. He maintained that AK 47 did not have the sanction of the Nagas. The minister said the specter of AK 47, ruling over the Nagas, should be “ruthlessly opposed” by the Nagas. He said the government  was solidly behind the opinion and desire of the people of Nagaland and that the State and national political parties were also equally united in this context.
Emphasizing on government’s top most priority to fight for security and comfort of its people, the minister cautioned that government has the authority to execute laws to protect its people from insecurity. Therefore, he appealed to all groups to refrain from provoking the government.
To a query, Imchen said “Chief Minister (Neiphiu Rio) has expressed his anxiety about the status of this Unification faction”. He also highlighted the statement of Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil that “Unification does not have the legal sanction”. In this regard, Imchen said the union home minister would issue necessary directives as to how the State government should deal with it.
Stating that State government was not a party to agreements between central government and the two NSCN factions, Imchen said “We cannot declare war to undergrounds saying that they are killing people”. Asked whether killings were political or law and order problem, the minister said “it is both” and added “underground is killing in the name of political issue”. He warned the factions to be careful as the Political Affairs Committee (of Nagaland government) had decided to implement the ground rules of ceasefire in letter and spirit.
Alluding to Indian freedom struggle under the banner of Congress which neither killed any Indian nor abducted or kidnapped or extorted from Indians, the minister questioned “What’s the difference with Nagas?”
On excesses committed by police personnel, Imchen said the personnel were performing duties under extreme situation and asked for the people to look into human perspective and emotion. “But it also does not mean that they should be doing whatever they like,” he said. The minister appealed to people to extend their co-operation instead of confronting the personnel during frisking and checking. Also speaking, Deputy Commissioner, Dimapur, Maongwati Aier, disclosed that three activists – one each from NSCN (K), NSCN (I-M) and NSCN (Unification) – were currently in the custody of police following their arrest along with nine weapons. NIDC chairman, Nuklutoshi; ADG (Operation), O. Alem; and SP Dimapur, Liremo Lotha; also attended the press conference.