Withdraw FIRs and apologise stand : Tit for tat development
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: March 05 2016 -

Withdraw FIRs and apologise.

This is the United Naga Council to Keishamthong Assembly Constituency MLA L Ibomcha Singh. No question of apology. If they apologise then FIR will be withdrawn.

This is MLA Ibomcha in a reply to the UNC. For those who came in late, here is a brief recap.

The MLA in question here filed two FIRs, one against Nagaland Chief Minister TR Zeliang for his alleged inflammatory speech which was delivered during the Lui-Ngai-Ni festival at Ukhrul on February 14.

The other FIR was against the Naga Students’ Federation for banning the movement of Manipur/Meitei vehicles in Naga inhabited areas (this was lifted after the State Government suspended the cops accused by the student body) as the State Government had allegedly failed to act on their memorandum submitted after some of their leaders were allegedly ill treated by some police commandos at Mantripukhri on February 14 while they were on their way to Ukhrul for the Lui-Ngai-Ni festival.

Interestingly the FIR against TR Zeliang was filed under Sections 124 A (sedition) and 153 A (communalism) of the Indian Penal Code. Retiring from service as the Law Secretary in the Government of Manipur, L Ibomcha must surely have some legal knowledge and hence understands the implications of the Sections under which the FIR was filed against TR Zeliang and this is what makes the matter more interesting.

However instead of engaging each other intellectually or say by using the mental faculty what one sees today is a type of confrontation which does not say anything good.

It is not a question of who is in the right and who is in the wrong, but things are not looking good at all.

Before the UNC came to the scene, the Chief Minister’s Office of TR Zeliang had earlier reacted to the FIR lodged by the MLA and instead sought to put the onus on the Government of Manipur for passing the three alleged anti-tribal Bills on August 31 last year.

This should give rise to certain questions which are important.

Is it desirable for the Chief Minister of one State to interfere in the internal affairs of a neighbouring State or is the term tribal inclusive to the level that what is seen to be the interest of tribals in one State should invariably draw the attention of tribals in other States ?

Tribe affiliation is understood, but at what cost ? Would it be justified if this affiliation threatens to drive wedges between two different States ?

These questions need thorough understanding and need to be looked beyond tribe affiliations. Moreover is a festival like the Lui-Ngai-Ni festival the correct platform to deliver a political statement that may have far reaching consequences ?

Central to all the unwanted developments that one sees is the deep divide between different communities and this is something which all should reflect upon and see how it can be bridged.