Nagas: Imagining The Forbidden
By Lakpachui Siro
20 March, 2013
Countercurrents.org
The recently concluded elections in Nagaland gave a sense of hope and belief in the regional political party that was advocating the rights and voice of the Nagas. The Union of India, the inherent successor of the British, believed that the Naga areas also fell under their jurisdiction by virtue of inheritance. The Nagas declared themselves independent on 14 August 1947, a day before the sun of independence rose on the Indian mainland. They showed their dissent in joining India with the 1951 plebiscite which made it apparent that the Nagas wanted complete independence. India, freshly minted with the understanding of military power, forcefully occupied the territories of the Nagas and stamped the tag of Indians on the Nagas. Thus, the Nagas continued to remain among the subjugated groups which were meted out with different treatments under different governments. History documents how the Nagas, time and again, have made clear their unwillingness to be part of India.
A major diplomatic move by the Government of India to appease the growing resistance by the Nagas ended in the creation of the state of Nagaland in 1963. The new state, with a total geographical size of 16,579 sq.km. (approx. ¼ of the total Naga territory in India), is much smaller than the actual size of the total areas of Naga territories. The Nagas falling outside of the boundaries of the new state of Nagaland were clubbed with the neighbouring states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur; becoming Manipur-Nagas, Assam-Nagas and Arunachal-Nagas thus, making the Nagas a minority in all these states except in Nagaland. Their representation in the Parliament becomes insignificant with only one MP (Lok Sabha) from the state of Nagaland, and one each from Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh, which is conditional. There have been instances where there were three Naga MPs (Lok Sabha) during the 1996 General Elections. (Nagaland—Imchalemba, Manipur— Meijinlung Kasom, Arunachal Pradesh— Wangcha Rajkumar.) However, the divide amongst the Nagas has been designed in such a manner that this kind of result does not happen often. Hence, in the 15th Lok Sabha elections of 2009, the Nagas had only one MP from Nagaland.
Increasingly, Nagas, especially under the leadership of the Nagaland Peoples Front (NPF), have realised the need for a political party which can represent the voice of the Nagas that does not confine to the present geography of the Nagaland state. Thus, the NPF extended its wing in the state of Manipur, and entered into the 10th Manipur Legislative Assembly Elections 2012 where four of its candidates emerged victorious. The NPF has expressed its willingness to contest in the upcoming Assembly Elections in Arunachal Pradesh.
Unfortunately, one of the main agendas of the NPF — uniting all the Naga territories into one administrative unit — has also become a point of strategic attack for the opposition parties in other states. This was manifested strongly in the 2012 elections in Manipur, where veteran politicians like Radhabinod Koijam of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and O Joy Singh of Manipur People’s Party (MPP) had to concede to defeat mainly because they formed an alliance with the NPF. For the Congress party to win a thumping majority of 42 seats from a total of 60 seemed inevitable—the Manipur integration card could not have lost them votes. To say that they were able to garner this majority despite the huge anti-incumbency drive just before the election goes on to prove just how any party supporting integration of Manipur can change the politics.
Let us take further the profess needs of a regional party in the North East. Apart from Assam, which has 14 seats in the Lok Sabha, no other state in the NE (North-East) has more than 2 seats in the Lower House. Hence, arguably, even if there is a regional party from any of the NE states except Assam, it will have little bearing if any in the national politics because democracy in India is all about numbers. We have seen the importance given to the Asom Gana Parishad Party at the national level as the state that they represent has high numbers.
Considering this analysis, if the Nagas are united as one administrative entity, which is the open agenda of the NPF and an aeonian aspiration of an overwhelmingly huge number of Nagas, the possibilities seem endless. There may come a day when we see an increase in the number of MPs in Lower House from the present one MP who is sent from the state. We can see that number going onto to become five considering the fact that Nagas can still send one MP each from the state of Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh representing their interests. Furthermore, with the inclusion of the Nagas from Assam along with Non-Naga settlers in the claimed Naga areas in Assam, it can add another MP to the Lower House. One also needs to keep into consideration that the state of Nagaland with its present contours holds a population of approximately 19 lakhs (1,980,602 according to the 2011 Census of India) still sends only one MP whereas the state of Arunachal Pradesh, geographically the largest state in the North East but with a population of approximately 14 lakhs (1,382,611 according to the 2011 Census of India) has two MPs in the Lower House. Imagine the political roles that we can play not only for the Nagas, but for the NE states.
The Nagas have been and are deliberately divided, which has furthered the complications of the desire to live as one people and as one family. It needs courage and unity amongst the Nagas who belong to different communities to overcome these obstacles. We should not confine ourselves to the narrow political discourses which limit our imaginations. With the fast changing nature of the Indian political setup, and the importance of coalitions in government formation, uniting the Nagas should not be seen as a threat. Certainly, the Nagas cherish the dream to live as one people, as one Nation — a nation that respects equality and peaceful coexistence.
To imagine the forbidden is a beauty in itself. The forbidden imagination is one that can be achieved, but we must be ready for it. The Nagas must be ready for it.
Lakpachui Siro is currently pursuing his Masters in Social Work from Delhi School of Social Work, University of Delhi. He is the founding member of FUNICH (Forum for Understanding the Naga-India Conflict & Human Rights). The FUNICH is a forum jointly formed by students comprising of both Nagas and Indian students with the objective of highlighting and sensitizing the student community and concerned citizen about the nature of the conflict between the Indian State and the Nagas. He was a former Naga students’ leader and is a Tangkhul from the contentious Ukhrul district of Manipur. He can be reached at [email protected]
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