Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC) has described recent statements by the NPF as “worthless allegations” not meriting response but maintained that the ruling NPF’s “flip flop stand on matters of governance and the Naga political issue needs to be exposed for the public to see the bare truth”.
NPCC has termed NPF’s political support to UPA and NDA at the centre as “political opportunism and doublespeak”.
To buttress its claim, NPCC said NPF “hobnobbed with UPA on different occasions” after the rout of the BJP-led NDA in 2003.
It also revealed, that when the NDA was again defeated in 2009, the NPF threatened two BJP legislators -M.C.Konyak and Y.Patton- that they would be dropped from the ministry if they did not join NPF.
After both relented on May 17,2009, NPCC said chief minister Neiphiu Rio rushed to meet with AICC president Sonia and prime minister Dr Manmohan to “extend unconditional support” to the UPA and which remained till the 2013 assembly election.
In the recent political crisis at the Centre when TMC and later, DMK withdrew support to the UPA coalition government, NPCC said NPF “presumed” that the UPA would collapse and therefore revived the NDA alliance in Nagaland with the BJP and JD (U) during the state assembly election.
It further claimed that NPF during the election campaign “provided helicopter” to ferry BJP president Rajnath Singh to campaign in Tizit on February 19,2013.
After formation of the DAN-III government, NPCC said chief minister Rio,home minister Kaito, and planning minister T.R.Zeliang met BJP president Rajnath Singh and JD(U) leader Sharad Pawar of the NDA, where Rio told the media that the NPF and BJP would work to ‘strengthen ties” and plan future strategies with the BJP-led NDA.
NPCC further claimed that despite pullouts by TMC and DMK UPA survived and when it was bolstered by a comfortable win in Karnataka elections, the NPF did a ‘volte-face’ by clarifying that it was “still supporting UPA” but “contradicted itself” when NPF stated in a news report it was joining hands and working with the BJP.
Taxation: On the accusations by the NPF that Congress was responsible for factors contributing to “taxations” in Nagaland; NPCC reiterated that it was the duty of the government to “enforce rule of law” against the “unabated taxation” which was raised by NGOs, civil societies and some church leaders.
NPCC pointed out that instead of governing the state in the past ten years, the NPF only caused further divide within the undergrounds, into groups by its “equi-closeness” policy, which differed from the “equi-distance” policy of the Congress.
NPCC accused NPF leaders of trying to escape responsibility by equating law and order problem with the Naga political issues that resulted in the “menace of unabated taxation” .
NPCC asserted that it was high time to delink Naga political issue from law and order problem and accused the NPF-led DAN government of turning a blind eye and resorting to “cheap and malicious propaganda with an intention to hoodwink” people from the “burning issue of unabated taxation”.
It also pointed out that Nagaland has the highest police to population ratio of 1:74 in India besides more than ten(10)units of Assam Rifles in various district headquarters and also CRPF and BSF, all of which were sufficient to “enforce the writ of the state’.
NPCC also claimed that while blaming Congress, NPF “contradicted” itself first by supporting the civil societies against unabated taxation and then “justifying taxation” on the plea that undergrounds did it for their “sustenance and rehabilitation.”
This, NPCC said exposed the bitter truth that the NPF government was “helpless” in curbing the menace of unabated taxation and challenged NPF that if it was serious about the sustenance and rehabilitation of the undergrounds, it should send a proposal to the government of India instead of blaming the Congress.
Political issue: NPCC renewed its earlier stand that NPF indulged only “rhetoric on Naga political issue” since 2003, when it promised to bring solution within three months of coming to power.
It further reminded that chief minister Neiphiu Rio had declared in the assembly, that talks were going on in the right direction but even after 16 years solution remained elusive.
NPCC also reminded that on August 22,2012 all 60 legislators and two MPs met central leaders for an early solution as per the resolutions adopted by the Joint Legislators Forum(JLF) on numerous occasions.
However, NPCC said while Congress decided to resign so as to pave way as per JLF resolution, the NPF claimed it had the mandate for a full term and refused to resign before any solution.
NPCC also slammed NPF for causing strains in relations with neighbouring states where Nagas were inhabited and which has caused stumbling block for solution to the Naga issue.
NPCC demanded that in its third innings, DAN should inform Nagas as to what contribution it made to facilitate solution in the past decade.