Acharya, Zeliang’s message against graft attracts salvo

Our Correspondent
Kohima, Oct. 30 (EMN): A former minister has taken a dig at the governor of Nagaland, PB Acharya, and Chief Minister TR Zeliang’s ‘anti-corruption’ messages on Vigilance Awareness Week recently in that they stated that corruption had become ‘a way of life.’
According to legislator Yitachu, ‘When the two heads of the state have made such a statement, the people has the right to know what the steps that they have initiated are and put forward to check corruption activities in the state.’
The legislator is part of former Chief Minister Dr. Shurhozelie Liezietsu-led group of the Naga Peoples’ Front (NPF).
Speaking at the sixth day of the indefinite ‘dharna’ by the NPF central youth wing outside the Civil Secretariat at Kohima town, Yitachu remarked: As corruption has become the ‘most lucrative business’ in the biggest democracy in the world (India), ‘Therefore, even the governor did not hesitate to take a step of installing an unconstitutional government.’
The member of Nagaland Legislative Assembly (NLA) accused the governor of ‘perpetuating the crisis, actively supported’ by the speaker of the assembly. ‘This situation would never come about had it not been the governor who is the constitutional head who is spearheading all these and installing a government that do not have the backing of the constitution and the law and putting a shame to the people of the state as a whole.’
The former minister remarked that the NLA speaker ‘keeps on dancing to the tunes of the governor’ and allowing the ‘unconstitutional government to keep on functioning’ which is ‘unexpected, unfortunate and unwarranted.’
‘Do the governor and the speaker want our Naga society to be heading towards a dictatorial kind of functioning in government system?’ Yitachu wondered. He remarked that ‘who are hungry for power are drunk, wants to enjoy the seat of power and therefore they do not care for the constitution and the law.’
However, he confidently said that ‘today, the people have clearly come to know that the present chief minister, TR Zeliang has the number but do not have the constitution and the law to sustain in his government to go further, while on the other hand, former ousted chief minister, Dr. Shürhozelie Liezietsu has the constitution and the law with him but do not have the number to run the government.’
Yitachu maintained further that the protest was ‘peaceful and it does not look for any kind of violence, protest and agitations that would bring destruction.’ However, he cautioned that ‘when a peaceful dharna cannot bring about and secure justice and rights to the people and when there is no alternate ways, then the ultimate ends will be heading towards violence and chaos.’
While being hopeful that the governor and speaker would not commit ‘another silly mistake’ which ‘may push the state into chaos and violence,’ Yitachu sounded caution that ‘when things are pushed too far and people continue to do illegal things, then it definitely will have no choice but to fight back with whatever they can to secure their rights and justice.’
Also speaking at the event was chairman of the Democratic Alliance of Nagaland government, Kuzholuzo Nienu. He pointed out that under the tenth scheduled of the Indian Constitution, every disqualification paper that is being moved to the speaker should be moved within 20 days of time. However, he said it had ‘lapsed and it’s been more than three months today compelling the party to start the sit-in protest.’ He accused the speaker also of not taking action ‘but storing the file in a cold storage and sitting over it.’
The Dan leader referred to a document dated July 20, 2017 and signed by the commissioner and secretary of the NLA addressed to him.
Nienu said it had submitted an application on the same day in regard to the leader of the NPF legislature party for recognition of the NPF legislative party’s leaders.
However, he remarked ‘knowing fully that we couldn’t fulfil the criteria in one day itself,’ he replied. He was ‘very prompt when we have no rights, and we appreciate him though he was not in our favour.’
Referring to the Rule 3 (1) of the Anti-Defection Rules of the Nagaland Legislative Assembly, Nienu said ‘I am sure it is not applicable to our case, but since they wanted to make it applicable and by force they have written this letter to me which stated that a legislature party leader is one who is elected by more than one-half of the members of the Legislature Party concerned.
The letter further stated ‘there is no record with the honourable speaker to prove the fact that you have been elected by more than one-half of the members of the NPF legislature party at a meeting.’ In this regard, Nienu maintained that ‘if the speaker is trying to force this rule to us, then he has every right to reject our application, so we must fulfil the criteria and in the process one by one all our MLAs started going against us, so we had to suspend some and expel others.’
Nevertheless, he said it has a total of 15 NPF MLAs, and out of which the NPF led by Shürhozelie has 11 and the other group has only 4. ‘So now it’s not one-half but we have absolute majority, and we have fulfil the criteria,’ Nienu said.
The day’s protest had ex-MLA Asu Keyho and NCP President Wonthungo Odyuo addressing the event. It was informed that the agitation would ‘continue till the demands are fulfilled and justice delivered.’