EMN
Dimapur, December 5
The Action - Committee against Unabated Taxation (ACAUT) has squarely asked the Nagaland government to start taking action, in that the armed Naga undergrounds have become virtually ‘untouchable’ and now go scot free with impunity, and without fear of prosecution after committing crimes. The mass-based platform of Naga civil organizations has raised the issue with the Nagaland government to apprise the Government of India.
The ACAUT, which enjoys wide support of Naga civil society, said Thursday that the duty of reining in the undergrounds’ activities lies with the state government. If the state fails, the ACAUT said, the government shall bear responsibility for every criminal activity in the state. The ACAUT issued to the media a copy of a memorandum addressed to the Home Minister of Nagaland.
The ACAUT reminded the Home Minister that defection is related to extortion vice versa. “Most of the functionaries of the NPGs (undergrounds), including senior, mid-level and lower functionaries collect taxes from the business community with impunity because they realize that they can defect to the other factions where he’d be virtually untouchable and free to enjoy his ill-gotten money if action is contemplated against him.” Defection from one group to another cannot be tolerated, the ACAUT said. “It is the bounden duty of the state government to raise this issue with the Government of India.”
The ACAUT has also demanded that any cadre or “non-cadre” arrested for extortion, carrying of arms, cognizable offences and related matters should be booked under the National Security Act by the police. “It is an open knowledge that Investigative Officers (IOs) do not want to invoke the said act because of political interference and personal threats,” the ACAUT reminded, referring to the common man’s reality. “It is also common knowledge that the Superintendents of Police, deputy commissioners, criminal prosecutors and judges of all the districts are under threat as far as detention of cadres under NSA is concerned.”
The organization has demanded that the Nagaland government start protecting the administrative officials, the court officials and their families with adequate security so that they can dispense justice freely and without fear.
“The ACAUT will accept nothing short of transference of NSA detainees out of the state, preferably to be lodged at Tihar jail as was done in the past. This, the ACAUT believes will reduce the crime graph in Nagaland. Unless this proposal is accepted, the state government shall bear responsibility for every criminal activity in the state,” the ACAUT added.
