After the recent fall-out between chief minister, T.R. Zeliang and Lok Sabha MP Neiphiu Rio, the two former Congress ministers (till 2003) and present top leaders of NPF have taken their fight to the media including social media in recent days.
Earlier, Lok Sabha MP Neiphiu Rio resigned as president of the parallel NPF after chief minister T.R. Zeliang patched up with Dr. Shürhozelie. Rio then released a letter addressed to Zeliang to the media in which he accused Zeliang of betrayal.
The war of letters or press war between T.R. Zeliang and Neiphiu Rio has revealed the deep schism between the two who had only in June ganged up against Dr. Shürhozelie.
In his no-holds barred reply, chief minister, T.R. Zeliang made it clear that Rio’s accusations that he (Zeliang) initiated the plot against Dr. Shürhozelie was baseless. Instead, Zeliang claimed that it was Rio’s emissary and relation who met him (Zeliang) on several occasion for both of them to work together under a plan of action. As per the action plan, Zeliang claimed that he was to canvass support with BJP in Delhi for a ministerial berth for Rio and in turn get support for chief minister at home.
Thereupon, Zeliang said he became chief minster through democratic and constitutional means when 36 NPF, 4 BJP and 7 independent MLAs supported him to become chief minister again. Zeliang pointed out that this exercise was commenced by Rio and his emissary.
After he became chief minister, Zeliang said Rio was selected as interim president by NPF MLAs and then as president of the party and later “allegedly ratified” at the general convention on September 20 at Dimapur “as per Rio’s demand”. Throwing the ball back in Rio’s court, Zeliang said the usurpation was at Rio’s behest.
Zeliang continued to fire his guns at Rio by accusing the latter of undertaking an “evaluation exercise” of calling NPF MLAs one by one for a change of guard in his (Rio’s) favour but it went in vain. Again, Zeliang said Rio had also rejected the demand for issue of NPF ticket by NPF MLAs at a core committee meeting on November 28 on the ground that the time had not arisen.
Further, Zeliang accused Rio of rejecting the call for reconciliation made by NPF president Dr. Shürhozelie without consulting him (Zeliang) or others.
Firing on, Zeliang hit out saying “it is a public fact that you are the architect of NDPP, but you have neither dissociated from NDPP nor from NPF, thereby creating confusion amongst our followers.”
Zeliang further clarified that fearing uncertainty of their political future, around 28 MLAs had met him and suggested that all of them must reconcile with Dr. Shürhozelie since protection of NPF’s cock symbol from being frozen was the foremost electoral imperative.
Accordingly, he said that on December 8, 2017, as per the wishes of more than a majority of the NPF MLAs, the ‘memorandum of reconciliation’ was signed between him and Dr. Shürhozelie in the presence of three MLAs from each group.
This reconciliation also acquired utmost relevance when all Nagas were longing for early solution well before the elections, he explained.
The letter by the chief minister further requested Rio as a “good friend not to take things personally” as everything that was happening was not due to the former’s personal decisions, but owing to collective decisions taken for the welfare of all concerned.
“As a leader, I consider it my bounden duty to salvage the future of the party and its members,” he pointed out.
Zeliang finally appealed: “As long as we are alive, let us live a life of positivity and live for the welfare of all Nagas, so that our people also lead a life of positivity, prosperity and happiness.”