Kohima, Nov 17(UNI) The United Naga Tribes Association of Border Areas (UNTABA) has stated that it is contemplating filing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) with regard to the land dispute between Nagaland and Assam states, as the case filed by Assam in the Supreme Court in 1988 was unconstitutional.
In a statement here, UNTABA chairman Hukavi Yepthom said ‘Litigation of inter-state boundary by any court is unconstitutional,’ adding that a UNTABA delegation recently visited New Delhi to bring the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s attention on the protracted border dispute.
According to Mr Yepthomi only the Parliament has power over boundary demarcation of a state or states.
He asserted that the claim has constitutional basis as enshrined in Articles 3 and 4 of the Constitution of India. The Assam Government’s insistence on the ‘1925 Notification’ of the then British Government as the binding and final boundary demarcation between the two states has no basis while Nagaland has genuine documentary evidence to disprove Assam’s claims, he maintaianed.
The delegation could not meet the PM, it however submitted a 13-point representation to be forwarded to the PM, while another copy was submitted to the Union Home Minister.
The delegation also met Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister of State (Home Affairs) and the Director of Internal Security, in-charge of the north-east.
While stating that UNTABA received the ‘green signal’ from the Nagaland Chief Minister for the Delhi visit, he added that it will be submitting a copy of the representation to the state government soon.
‘Bringing back Naga territory transferred to Assam by the British Government was the core of the issue,’ Mr Yepthomi reiterated.
In this regard, He appealed to all Naga Political Groups in negotiation with the Center ‘to raise the issue in the right perspective.’
Maintaining that the Supreme Court has acknowledged that it cannot arbitrate on the matter, he said that the SC has, as a result, through an interim order, directed the Home Ministry to amicably settle the matter and the Home Ministry had communicated the same to the two state governments in concern.
An outcome of the initiative is a Chief Secretarial level meeting of the two states, which was initially set for November 15, will take place on November 16 in Guwahati.
Mr Yepthomi further said that the delegation would revisit Delhi to meet the PM in person. This will however depend on the outcome of the meeting between the two Chief Secretaries of both the states, he added. UN