DIMAPUR, APR 20 : A day after the NPF rejected the demand for resignation of education and SCERT minister Nyeiwang Konyak and terming it as \u2018flimsy\u2019, the Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC) hit back saying that the NPF by \u201cblindly defending\u201d the minister was tantamount to making itself a party to the corruption leveled against him.\nNPCC president S.I Jamir, in a press statement, also defended Tuesday\u2019s dharna(sit-in protest)held in front of the Raj Bhavan, as a peaceful form of protest prevalent in all democratic countries and practiced by people to express grievance on issues of public importance. He slammed the NPF\u2019s attempt to vilify such democratic methods as \u201cdictatorial\u201d deserving to be condemned by democratic loving people.
\nHitting out at the NPF for criticizing the dharna as an alien culture and always speaking as if it was not part of the Indian political system, the NPCC chief said the NPF cannot go on testing the intellect of the Naga people by trying to project itself as the sole champion of Naga identity and culture.
\nSaying that during the past eight years of NPF rule, corruption has percolated down to the grass root level, the NPCC chief shot back \u201cif the NPF thinks dharna is an alien culture, isn\u2019t corruption alien to Nagas?\u201d. He reasserted that the NPF party defending a tainted minister was nothing short of \u201cimposing alien culture on Nagas\u201d
\nFurther, he said the NPF cannot claim to be sacrosanct when it accused the Congress of \u201cimposing alien culture and habit\u201d when he pointed out that the NPF\u2019s alliance with national political parties like BJP, JDU, Samata Party and NCP were well known to the Naga people.
\nFurther he said the NPF\u2019s \u2018use and throw\u2019 policy had only landed itself in isolation from all national political parties who were now rejecting the NPF. \u201cIt won\u2019t be a surprise, if one day, the NPF says parting ways with their alliance national parties were culture cleansing exercises,\u201d he added.
\nThe NPCC chief also said the NPF should explain as to why it was extending voluntary support to UPA government if the NPF accuses the Congress of trying to impose alien culture on Nagas. He said the Congress had resorted to dharna because the minister of school education & SCERT Nyeiwang Konyak had \u201clost all his senses of moral responsibility\u201d while the chief minister himself too had failed to take action.
\nAdmitting that the issue was also discussed in the assembly session, S.I Jamir however, recalled that while the minister had admitted to his involvement in corruption but failed to produce the detailed expenditure as demanded by the opposition party.
\nThe NPCC chief also maintained that the people knew very well the limitation of the chief minister as to why he had failed to take appropriate action against the minister. He concluded that the NPF describing the Congress\u2019 protest against corruption as alien culture amply exposed that they (NPF) are all corrupt.\u201d
\nIt may be recalled that the NPCC on Tuesday, had submitted a memorandum to the Governor of Nagaland after its dharna, urging him to intervene in the matter for removal of Nyeiwang Konyak for involvement in various irregularities committed in the department of school education.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"