'Political level' talk peps up UNC leaders
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, February 09 2014: Presence of three Cabinet Ministers at the 7th round of tripartite talk held at Senapati district headquarters on February 6 between UNC, the Government of India and the State Government on the demand for an Alternative Arrangement for Nagas of Manipur pending a solution to the Indo-Naga political dialogue affirmed that the process has been upgraded to a political process and the meeting agreed to carry forward the dialogue process.

One key member of the Committee for Alternative Arrangement told The Sangai Express that they believe the process has been upgraded to a political level as indicated by the presence of three Cabinet Ministers at the Senapati meet for the first time.

The 7th round of talk

Although no Cabinet Minister of the Government of India was present at the 7th round of tripartite talk, three Cabinet Ministers of the State Government were present at the meeting.

Representatives of both the Government of India and the Government of Manipur had been refusing to take the process of tripartite talk to the political level till the 6th round on the ground that they were not authorised to take any decision in this regard.

But at the 6th round of the tripartite talk, representatives of both the Government of India and Government of Manipur agreed to upgrade the process to political level.

Subsequent upon the same understanding, the 7th round of tripartite talk held at Senapati was done at political level.

The Government representatives also asked UNC not to harbour any bad feeling if they must wait till the Lok Sabha election is over as the election code of conduct may come into force before the next round of tripartite talk can be organised, claimed the alternative arrangement committee member.

Another source informed that UNC and Naga leaders saw some positive developments after the tripartite talk was upgraded to political level and it also reduced to some extent trust deficit that existed between Naga leaders and the Government of India.

The first ever political level tripartite talk held between UNC, the Centre and State Govt at Senapati was somehow closely linked with the forthcoming Lok Sabha election, confided the source.