Bandh relaxed in Nagaland for people to attend church services
Kohima: The Nagaland Cabinet has decided to submit a memorandum to the Prime Minister to issue an ordinance to exempt the state from the provision of Part IX A of the Constitution related to municipalities and ULBs, and their composition.
The decision comes in the wake of various tribal organisations opposing elections to Urban Local Bodies (ULB) with 33 per cent reservation of seats for women.
Taking serious consideration of the widespread concern expressed by various tribal and other organisations with regard to certain provisions of Part IX-A of the Constitution relating to municipalities and women reservation, the state Cabinet, in an emergency meeting attended by special invitees comprising legislators from all tribes on Saturday, decided to submit a memorandum to the Prime Minister to amend the Constitution through an ordinance. The state Cabinet has decided to take the matter to New Delhi to demand that Nagaland be exempted from the purview of Part IX A.
All 60 legislators of the state, both the MPs, the chairman and vice chairman of the Democratic Alliance of Nagaland will submit the memorandum jointly for which an early appointment with the Prime Minister has been sought. Tribal organisations are observing an indefinite bandh in the state against the functioning of state government offices and vehicles and demanding the resignation of Chief Minister T R Zeliang and his cabinet.
On February 2, violent mobs had set afire government offices and vehicles in Kohima, and also vandalised the State Election Commission office. However, the decision of the Cabinet has been rejected by various tribal organisations and civil societies. Nagaland Tribes Action Committee (NTAC) Kohima has expressed shock over the decision of state Cabinet to submit a memorandum to the PM to amend the provision of Part IX A.
NTAC Kohima convener K T Vilie and secretary C T Jamir in a release said the people of Nagaland are aware that the State Assembly is empowered to make laws and amend them as per a need of the State as empowered by Article 371 (A) of the Constitution. Article 371 (A) of the Indian Constitution deals with special provision with respect to the state of Nagaland.
This move of the Cabinet, NTAC Kohima said is “sheer mockery of the state Assembly itself, the democracy of the state and the people of the state in general.” It termed the decision of the Cabinet “a total sell-out of the Article 371 (A).” Therefore, NTAC Kohima said the decision also confirms the urgency of the demand for the resignation of the Chief Minister T R Zeliang before further damage is done to the state. Nagaland Public Rights Awareness and Action Forum said the government should call a special Assembly session to again revoke the said Act reiterating the 2012 resolution and further revoking the 2016 resolution.
Meanwhile, the ongoing bandh in Nagaland was on Sunday relaxed by various tribal organisations to allow people to attend church services in the Christian majority state. The organisations are protesting against the state government for going ahead with the Urban Local Body (ULB) polls with 33 per cent seats reserved for women.
The bandh against functioning of the state government offices and vehicles was only relaxed for Sunday and would continue indefinitely till Chief Minister T R Zeliang and his Cabinet colleagues step down, Nagaland Tribes Action Committee (NTAC) Kohima said.
Private activities, including business, educational institutions, banks and movement of pedestrians have been exempted from the bandh, the organisation stated. The prohibitory order imposed in some areas of Kohima was still in force today even though no untoward incident was reported in the state.
The functioning of the Nagaland Board of School Education, Nagaland Public Service Commission, SCERT, banks, postal, power sub-stations, fire and emergency services, telecom and Nagaland State Transport have been exempted from the purview of the bandh, a Kohima-based tribal youth body Angami Youth Organisation (AYO) said.
AYO volunteers had on Saturday locked the main gate of the Nagaland Civil Secretariat, state Assembly building and some government offices in Kohima demanding the resignation of Zeliang and his cabinet colleagues. (PTI)