Resenting Khaplang faction’s growing relationship with anti-Indian insurgent outfits, Modi government is likely to reject any more extension of ceasefire agreement with this group of Naga rebels who are at home in Myanmar
Sujit Chakraborty
NEW DELHI, March 12
The Modi government is unlikely to extend ceasefire with the NSCN-Khaplang faction as it finds the top leaders of the outfit do not care about Nagas in India, extends shelter to anti-Indian insurgent groups in its domain and are “happily settled in Myanmar”. The year-long ceasefire agreement with the NSCN-K faction is scheduled to expire on April 29.
Highly placed sources indicated to the Vision Communications that the NSCN-K, headed by S S Khaplang, had already entered into a ceasefire agreement with the Myanmar government on April 9, 2012.
Y Wanting Naga, supervisor of the Ceasefire Supervisory Board located at Mon in Nagaland, was one of the six signatories to the agreement. Wanting Naga had signed the ceasefire extension agreement with Government of India and at the same time he was a signatory to the accord signed with the Myanmar government.
The union government is extremely unhappy over the inordinate delay in reaching a final settlement to the 17-year long marathon peace talks with the NSCN-IM faction. It is in this context the Ministry of Home Affairs is likely to reject any more extension of ceasefire agreement with NSCN-K faction.
NSCN-K supremo is a Heimei Naga, who hails from Myanmar and as such he has no interest in the wellbeing of the Nagas here. The Centre is also believed to be upset over the report that other anti-Indian insurgents including PLA, UNLF, Songbijit faction of NDFB, ULFA faction headed by Paresh Baruah and NLFT leader Biswamohan were “getting shelter and allowed to roam freely in the Khaplang domain in Myanmar.”
A senior intelligence official told the Vision Communications on Thursday that “ïn India they roam freely under garb of ceasefire agreement and at the same time hobnob with anti-Indian terrorists in Myanmar. This dubious role can’t be allowed any more. This government means business and it will not allow any such misadventure.”
Interestingly, the NSCN-Khole-Kitovi faction also opposes any more extension of ceasefire with the NSCN-K faction. “We are here to solve the long-awaited Naga problem. Let Khaplang and his followers find out a solution to the Nagas of Myanmar,” sources in this faction assert. Another faction, NSCN-IM is also not keen to allow Khaplang and his men to play any role in the ongoing peace talks as “Khaplang has not expressed any interest till date to raise any issue for the Nagas of India,” a senior NSCN-IM leader said.
Sources indicated that the newly appointed interlocutor Mr R N Ravi has been assigned the task of suggesting a formula for solution to the Nagas within a specific timeframe. Now it remains to be seen how the Khaplang faction reacts if the ceasefire extension does not come about.
