Eastern Mirror Desk
Dimapur, June 26: Nagaland’s lone Rajya Sabha member KG Kenye has urged the central government to treat issues pertaining to Northeast region with earnestness and importance. In his address at the 249th session of the Rajya Sabha on June 20, Kenye spoke on the Citizenship Amendment Bill and requested the centre to interact more with Assam, Nagaland, and its neighbouring states.
“We don’t like to be imposed with the dictate by the centre. We share the nation’s problem, nation’s problem is our problem but the nation must first think of its own citizen’s welfare before thinking of bringing in infiltrator from outside”, he stated.
Kenye recounted the history of 1947 where he claimed that the north-western frontiers were not given their due share of consideration during partition. “This region when it comes to the contentious citizenship amendment bill which was placed in the Lok Sabha in the early part of this year has tear up lots of emotions and have reminded us of the ugly violent massacre of 1986(sic)”,he said.
He further commented that this was in part due to infiltrators and illegal immigrants from the neighbouring regions. The region, Kenye said, was embedded with ‘chronic problems ‘ which we have inherited over the centuries. He reminded the house that the region’s entry to this union has been peculiar and has not been normal or natural.
Moreover, Kenye pointed out that in 1935, when the reform schemes were undertaken we were not part of it. In the first two elections of 1952 and 1957 the state was not part of electoral process. We entered through an agreement which is often referred to as 16 points agreement of 1960, he stated. He asserted that this region is peculiar and hypersensitive while Nagaland is often referred to as the political nerve centre of the entire region.
‘Nagaland has bundles of history behind and along with us the peculiarity of the entire region in the four five six states contentious to us has also shared the same sentiment and history’, the MP remarked.
Kenye urged both the centre and the states concerned to reach a certain level of understanding where modalities and mechanism can be worked out for each particular state in the region.
The MP also requested the centre to settle the Naga peace talk process expediently.
“The last ministry has shown so much will and determination to solve immediately in 2014, but over the years the government is losing steam and the longer it drags on it will tax the regional interest and the national interest,” the MP stated.
