Will Modi speak in English or Hindi?
Staff Reporter
DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 28
Hectic preparations are on for the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Nagaland as the people of the State, especially the State Government. The PM is expected to touch down in Dimapur on 30th Novemberand stay the night at the Police House in Chumukedima and then proceed to Kohima the next morning to inaugurate the Hornbill Festival.
This will be the first time that a PM is on an official visit to Nagaland since former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee came calling in 2003. Vajpayee had spent three days in Kohima in the early winter of 2003 having spent two nights at Kohima’s Raj Bhavan. It was Vajpayee who told an enormous gathering at the Indira Gandhi Stadium that, Ïndia understands and respects the unique history of Nagas”.
Till now the details of Modi’s visit to Nagaland are yet to be clear but sources confirmed that he is schedule to have a meeting with the BJP leaders of Nagaland in Dimapur. The State Government has also planned an elaborate State Dinner in honour of the visiting PM at Chumukedima. All VIPs of the state including senior bureaucrats are expected to attend the dinner.
Modi is scheduled to fly by helicopter to Kohima to attend the Hornbill Festival and then depart Kohima for Dimapur from where he will depart for Tripura.
The State Government is banking on Modi to make several announcements, especially financial grants to bail out the State government from the financial crisis. The Nagaland Government also hopes that Modi’s visit will stabilise the political scenario, especially in the backdrop of the disqualification of three BJP MLAs. A rift has emerged between the BJP and the NPF in Nagaland though both parties are part of the ruling alliance.
The three day visit of Vajyapee was path breaking as the then PM had met cross sections of Naga society including civil societies, political parties, NGOs, prominent citizens and State Government representatives.
Another subject that has become a keen public debate is the language in which Modi would address the people of Nagaland. If Modi speaks in Hindi, very few people will understand his speech. Vajpayee, during his visit, had addressed the public function in English and had spoken in Hindi during the Raj Bhavan dinner at the Durbar Hall and had again spoken in English at the State dinner in the State Banquet Hall.
Some of the highlights of Vajpayee’s visit was a lengthy interaction with the press and media and also with the civil societies. In fact, he was delayed for the State dinner by more than a couple of hours as he was interacting with various sections of Naga society at Raj Bhavan.
Modi’s upcoming visit will definitely be compared with the Vajpayee visit as both are BJP Prime Minister’s leading NDA governments at the Centre. Moreover, it has been more than 10 years since a Prime Minister has come calling on the Naga people since the historic and reassuring visit of Vajpayee in 2003.
