UNC urges SC to study ground reality
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, February 29 2012:
United Naga Council (UNC) has pleaded the Supreme Court to consider all the ground realities in hearing the writ petition filed against the economic blockade clamped along the two National Highways of the State by the Naga body.
Hearing and adjudication of the petition without considering the inputs from the UNC may result to miscarriage of substantial justice, said a press release issued by the Publicity Wing of UNC.
It said, UNC had submitted an application to the apex Court complaining that the apex Naga body had been wrongly accused as the frontal organisation of NSCN (IM) in the petition filed by one Prakash Singh.
UNC further alleged that the petitioner had deliberately concealed the historical facts and backgrounds which would be helpful in understanding the genesis and root cause of the economic blockade.
The press release further said, UNC took the extreme step of enforcing economic blockade to protect the constitutional rights of the Naga people.
Maintaining that Nagas simply stood against the bifurfication of its land, the press release alleged that efforts were however being made to criminalise the genuine protest of the Nagas.
The Government of Manipur had inked memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Naga people in four different occasions in 1981, 1992, 1996 and 1998 .
The MoUs had enunciated that the Government of Manipur would take ethnic affinities into consideration in the readjustment and demarcation of district boundaries, the press release said.
UNC clamped the economic blockade with effect from August 1, 2011 as the Government of Manipur encouraged the demand for creation of Sadar Hills district through bifurfication of Senapati district and inclusion of Naga villages and land to the proposed new district, it added.
The press release alleged that the Ibobi Singh Government responded to the total blockade of Sadar Hills Districthood Demand Committee (SHDDC) with alacrity without consulting the Nagas of Manipur as earlier agreed upon.
UNC was compelled to launch a counter blockade against the decision of the State Government that announced the formation of Sadar Hills district out of the present Senapati district where many Naga villages would be affected, it said.