WHEN I was around six years old, I heard some elders talking about “Rani” Gaidinliu. A naturally curious lad, I asked my mother who was this rani? She explained that the rani in question was a Zeliangrong lady who was given the title of “Rani” by Nehru because she had fought the British. Later on I came to learn that my mother was acquainted with Madame Gaidinliu, who, during her period of exile to Tuensang, was a regular customer at my parents’ shop at Mokokchung. The next time I came across her name was in a book by an I.C.S. officer wherein it was mentioned that she had founded a cult named Heraka and Dr.Haralu, the first Naga doctor was instrumental in her capture. The only thing that caught my attention was the word Heraka, for it was a name given by a few Sumi parents to their children.
Now that there’s such a hue and cry about her deeds and status I’d be very grateful if some of our more knowledgable reader could clear up a few points that puzzle me.
First, I’d like to know if my Rongmei brothers have a tradition of representative leadership, like the majority of Naga tribes or hereditary leadership, similar to the Konyak Anghs and the Sumi Kukamis(traditional hereditary chiefs of villages). If it is the former then how did you acquire a “Rani”? Did you feel the need to have a “Rani” because the Meities had a “Raja”? Similar to the need the Israelites felt when they asked God to give the making just because all the surrounding peoples had kings? If it is the latter, is “Rani” Gaidinliu the Rani of all Rongmeis everywhere, like traditional ranis, or is she the rani of a few villages(like the Konyak Angs) or a single village(like the Sumi Kukamis)? Was she the daughter of a “Raja” or is the succession matrilineal and her mother a “Rani”?
Second, I’d be very grateful if someone would kindly inform me of the battles she fought against the ‘Evil British Empire’. There must have been quite a few for successive central governments(irrespective of political parties) to honour her so, even going to the extent of
issuing commerative postage stamps bearing her name and face; an honour sought by many but accorded to few. Please don’t get me wrong, I don’t begrudge her an iota of the honours heaped upon her, but it is incumbent upon us to leave a truthful record for future generations lest they forget.
Until these doubts are cleared up, the only conclusion I can arrive at are these:-
1. That Madame Gaidinliu was released from jail because she had been jailed by the British, similar to the Americans releasing all Mafiaso Bosses during World War Two, just because they were jailed by Mussolini. When all other freedom fighters walked home free upon India achieving independence what was the need to exile her unless the Indian authorities were aware of the gravity of her crimes?
2. The fact that she was given the unofficial title of “Rani”(remember that the Constitution of India bars all citizens of India from holding any title except military titles), an official residence, transportation and security was as a counter to the N.N.C. under Mr. A. Z. Phizo. She could have been accorded the same privileges in the state of Manipur where she would have been in less danger. But no, Nehru chose to keep her in Nagaland as the carrot with the Indian Army as the stick. The message was, “Obey me and this is what you get(the carot, the privileges enjoyed by Madame Gaidinliu), disobey me and you get this(the Indian Army Stick).
3. That the present B.J.P. government is doing all it can to further honour Madame Gaidinliu makes me agree with Mr. Z. Lohe that there is a hidden agenda for the saffronisation of Nagaland. For though the aims of Nehru and the B.J.P. may differ, the instrument is the same, for Madame Gaidinliu is the only personality among the Nagas that they can use to further their ends.
4. If Nagas are to be honoured for their resistance against the British why have successive governments ignored the brave warriors of Khonoma who laid down their lives to protect their village and land from the British? A land which is every bit as Indian as the village and land of Madame Gaidinliu.
If the conclusions I have drawn are proved wrong, I will be as happy as or happier than any other person because a Naga woman is being honoured. But until then, I can only be sad that a Naga was and is being honoured for all the wrong reasons.
