THE Opposition NPP’s recent plea for making public the tripartite peace agreement with ANVC is spot on, even though its other suggestion for NIA probe into alleged politico-militant nexus in Garo Hills might be seen as a face-saving response to Chief Minister Mukul Sangma’s libel suit against NPP supremo Purno A.Sangma in Delhi High Court. NPP is absolutely right in asking for the full text of the Agreement which sure has wider ramifications for the whole State. It is simply absurd that only the three parties having a hand in it—-Centre, State Government and ANVC—-should be privy to the finer details of the basis of peace agreement arrived at with this Garo outfit. In the past, invariably all the peace agreements signed in the country were instantly made public. Why in this case there should be a veil is a mystery . It is curious, to say the least, that neither the Ministry of Home Affairs nor the State Government has thought it necessary to post the text in their official website. Having signed the Agreement with much fanfare in Delhi, there cannot be any justification for keeping it under the wraps. What makes the matter worse is that Home Minister Roshan Warjri has ruled it out on a rather untenable plank—let the ANVC lay down arms first . Surely this is bound to create misgivings. After all, this piece of truce is a public property and it should be treated as such. True, the Peace Agreement has its operative jurisdiction only in Garo Hills, but few can miss the political implications of it all. When the Government of India agrees on devolution of more power and authority on the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council and there is commitment on direct funding to it, the rest of the tribal autonomous areas too would automatically become involved parties. Certainly, if and when the Sixth Schedule is amended, as it will require to be for making the ANVC Peace Agreement a reality, it will hopefully apply equally to the remaining Autonomous Councils of the Northeast. Therefore, the State Government will be well advised to share this piece of document with the people of the State without long.
As for the NPP demand for a Central probe under National Investigation Agency (NIA) into the politico-militant nexus, it should be politically compelling for the Chief Minister to clear his name being dragged into the murky business of militancy in the Garo Hills by his arch rival, the redoubtable P.A. Sangma. So far the junior Sangma has taken the easiest option of taking the the senior Sangma’s bombastic charges to the court of law. But the real test for him would be to demonstrate his innocence by going for a credible all-encompassing probe. Whether anyone likes it or not, there is a popular public perception that in the Garo Hills politicians of every hue have a tacit nexus with the gun-toting outfits. The unsubstantiated charge against those who join electoral politics in Garo Hills is that few can survive without placating the dominant militants of the area. Indeed, this is the bane of Garo Hills politics and nobody can wish it away. That Garo Hills has plummeted to the precipice of horrible gun culture became possible because almost every politician has allowed himself to be used by the militants one way or the other. If things are to turn on its head now, it will require a whole lot of guts and certain amount of political sagacity for freeing Garo Hills from the clutches of the self-serving militants. The onus clearly lies with the politicos.
