New Delhi
In a major development senior BJP leaders in Nagaland were compelled on Sunday, Jan 22, to give assurance to 'angry' Karyakartas that they would meet central leaders and insist to review the seat share pact with Neiphiu Rio-led NDPP to 30:30 formula.
The assurance was given after supporters of 'BJP intending candidate' gheraoed the Dimapur residence of BJP legislature party leader and deputy chief minister Y. Patton and staged a noisy protest.
Apparently, they protested that the 20:40 seat share formula with NDPP was unacceptable as many ticket aspirants were either contestants of 2018 or were earlier assured by the 'key office bearer' that they would be accommodated.
After senior leaders Y Patton (Deputy CM) and state unit president Temjen Imna Along failed to pacify them, the two leaders assured the crowd that they will insist for the 30-30 seat share in 60-member assembly.
"We can go to Guwahati and also New Delhi and if our request is not heeded, we all will resign en masse," one of the leaders told the party karyakartas, eyewitness accounts claimed.
Video of the protest and BJP workers raising slogans also went viral on social media in no time.
In fact, sources said one key office bearer of the saffron party was reportedly given a chase by the
mob and as he had descended in the residence of a senior colleague, the mob kept raising slogans
demanding immediate remedial of their grievances.
Several BJP supporters were reportedly heard screaming that "people and leaders from Assam" cannot decide
whether the Naga voters will back the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi or not.
The reference was to NEDA convener and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who is seen in
the entire plot of having been worked as a 'friend' of Nagaland Chief Minister Rio.
Both Rio and Sarma are originally from Congress and NDPP sources said their friendship existing for last
many years.
Many in Nagaland BJP were surprised at the central BJP's electoral strategies vis-a-vis Nagaland and Meghalaya.
In Nagaland, to the surprise of many while the BJP has settled for 20 seats yet again like 2018 whereas there were
strong demands for at least making the partnership equal.
In Meghalaya, the BJP has dumped its ally Conrad Sangma-led NPP and will go alone.
In 2018, BJP had won only two seats in Meghalaya out of over 40 seats it contested.
But in Nagaland, the BJP had won 12 out of only 20 seats it contested and it also had a better strike
rate than NDPP of Rio that had won won only 18 out of 40.
Analysts say for about one year there have been repeated tussles between a section of BJP leaders in Nagaland led by deputy CM Y patton and the party high command over the 20:40 formula. State unit president Temjen Imna Along and Nagaland in-charge Nalin Kohli were largely seen as pro-Neiphiu Rio.
Another central BJP leader Rituraj Sinha had earlier this month tried to take a corrective step but he could not do much as his efforts to meet ticket aspirants including a large number of them from NDPP could not yield expected results.
Apparently, on Jan 19 seat share talks in Delhi attended by Chief Minister Rio and his Assam counterpart Himanta Biswa Sarma, Sinha and deputy CM Patton were again sidelined.
Analysts say NDPP's approach has been to exploit the name and popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi
but stall the growth of BJP in Nagaland.
The BJP's popularity and acceptability of Narendra Modi as a popular Prime Minister in Nagaland could be
gauged from the fact that a senior NDPP legislator Imkong L Imchen resigned as MLA on Jan 21, Saturday,
and is still eyeing a BJP ticket.
So are a few more Ao leaders from Mokokchung district including Alemtemshi Jamir, a former Chief Secretary.
Alemtemshi was the founding working president of NDPP in 2017 when Rio and veteran leader Chingwang Konyak
had floated the party.
The seat-share discussions on Jan 19 in Delhi and reported controversies about alleged 'threats' from NSCN-IM insisting to NDPP leaders to take Pughoboto seat for a nephew of a late NSCN-IM leader has embarrassed BJP as well.
In 2018 Dr A Sukhato, a medico and retired Director of Medical and Health Services, had lost the seat to
NPF nominee by a margin of 70 votes only.
Trying to keep up the attack on BJP, Nagaland Congress president K Therie in a statement said
that, “it was not intimidation but was a directive from the NDPP High Command".
In 1998, the NSCN-IM was against the polls but this year's its stance is not clear. But it is alleges established
political players in Kohima have 'nexus' with the NSCN-IM.
Incidentally, the NSCN-IM leader Thuingaleng Muivah is insisting on separate Naga flag and constitution
and this has stalled taking the final call to ink a peace pact. The umbrella group of seven Naga outfits NNPG
is, however, keen to ink a final peace pact. Muivah is in negotiation with the centre since 1997 when
I K Gujral was the Prime Minister and the Modi government has said that all parleys had concluded by Oct 31,
2019.
A BJP leader on the condition of anonymity told IANS, "We understand the political compulsions to have
parleys to bring Naga solution but entertaining NSCN-IM diktats for drawing up electoral strategies by NDPP
is unacceptable and also compromises on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's categorical assertion on
terror funding and pursing nationalistic politics".
"The BJP being the ruling major partner in Nagaland knows well that Nagaland desperately needs healing and
deliverance from the bondage of suppression....The people of Nagaland being tired and weary of living with the
alien culture of unabated exploitation, corruption and suppression of the fundamental rights of the people, the
political solution was therefore ardently demanded," wrote Z Lohe, a former Nagaland Assembly Speaker in
an article for local newspapers.
"Not in election matters alone, but in every matter of governance, Nagaland has been under the dictate of
rogue elements in connivance with the state Govt," he wrote.
From time to time former Gujarat Governor and veteran Naga leader S C Jamir has also been raising
these issues.
Besides insisting on 20:40 formula and reportedly seeking the Pughoboto seat for itself, the NDPP
is also seeking to grab Chizami assembly seat which was in BJP quota in 2018.
The NDPP wants Chizami seat in Phek district -- also falling under Temyimia belt.
The saffron party leaders from Nagaland and a few in Delhi view this as a "deliberate ploy" to prevent
BJP's entry into the politically crucial Tenyimia belt. Besides Phek distrist, Kohima district to which
Chef Minister Rio belongs also falls under Tenyimia belt.
The BJP ticket aspirant for Chizami, Kevechutso Doulo certainly deserves another shot at the goal post, is the
refrain of some sections. In 2018, Doulo lost the seat by a narrow margin of only 403 votes.
Kezhienyi Khalo of NPF had won the seat and the BJP camp claims that "strategically" the sitting MLA may back
the saffron party nominee this time if he does not contest polls himself.
So the anguish of BJP Karyakartas surfacing in such blatant and assertive manner on Jan 22 evening
(Sunday) is not quite all of a sudden development.
Now the ball will be finally in the court of BJP central leadership and the Parliamentary Board.
Nagaland goes to the polls on Feb 27 with Meghalaya while voting in Tripura is on Feb 16.
"New Delhi knows well what Nagaland is, and who does what in Nagaland," says Lohe in his
article and observers believe that the words are well measured.
R N Ravi, a former IB sleuth and former Nagaland Governor, too was aware of the extortion menace and in
2021 had raised the issue vocally.
For all practical purposes, Ravi had also suggested that the rampant extortion racket in Nagaland had the blessings
of the so-called Neta-underground influence.
ends
(Nirendra Dev is a New Delhi-based journalist. He is also author of books, 'The Talking Guns: North East India' and 'Modi to Moditva: An Uncensored Truth'. Views are personal)
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Nirendra Dev
New Delhi
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