NPF demands Gov’s recall, speaker’s resignation

Naga People’s Front (NPF)’s Central Office Bearers (COBs) on Monday demanded that the Government of India immediately recall the Governor of Nagaland so as to ensure that the integrity of the Constitution of India was maintained.

In a press release, the resolution committee convenor Sebastian Zumvu and members Phushika V Aomi and Lepshi Ao said this was resolved by COBs when they met at the party office Kohima, on August 14, 2017.

COBs stated that governor instead of applying his mind to summon the assembly, giving reasonable time for former chief minister Dr Shürhozelie to call for a vote of confidence, dislodged the Dr Shürhozelie government “so as to enable the new dispensation to merge with the BJP.”

As custodian of the Constitution of India in the state, COBs said the governor should have rectified the anomaly in the assembly when the speaker “mysteriously” accepted the whip of expelled NPF member TR Zeliang as the official Whip of the NPF party despite the fact that Kiyanilie Peseyie, who was appointed as the chief whip of the NPF party on November 14, 2014 and accepted by the assembly secretariat vide notification dated November 15, 2014, continued to be the official chief whip of NPF.

The COBs also asked NLA speaker to step down immediately while accusing him reducing the proceedings of the Assembly to “a family affair”. COBs said the speaker “inexplicably accepted” both the whips issued by the legal and authorized chief whip Kiyanilie Peseyie, and the whip issued by “his brother-in-law TR Zeliang.”

By opting to accept two whips from the same political party, COBs said the speaker defiled the very aim behind the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution of India.

Meanwhile, the COB also rejected the “illegal appointment of one so-called bogus Interim President by some expelled and suspended NPF MLAs.” They said that nowhere in the party constitution was it mentioned about the post or position of any interim or ad hoc or work charged president. They maintained that announcement of such a post by suspended and expelled NPF MLAs was illegal and ultra vires meant only to confuse the party rank and file. 

In this regard, the COBs have appealed to party men and women not to be swayed by “false, illogical, illegal and mischievous announcements made by vested interests determined to break up the unity, integrity and cohesion of the NPF party.”