Says Assam Rifles has set up outpost near on the way to its headquarters
Dimapur, April 10 (EMN): The NSCN (IM) has accused Indian armed forces personnel, particularly the Assam Rifles (AR), of deliberately violating the ceasefire ground rules signed between the government of India (GoI) and the group by setting up an outpost at Doyapur, which is situation on way to its headquarters in Hebron.
A press statement from the NSCN (IM) stated that in the ceasefire agreement, the GoI had agreed not to set up any camp at the Dimapur-Hebron road but the AR personnel started stationing at Doyapur almost two years ago.
“The AR personnel under the direction of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), GoI has deliberately set up an outpost at Doyapur without any regard to the prior agreement and has been keeping a sharp eye on NSCN members going in and out of Hebron. The AR personnel armed with guns and registry and assisted by the installed CCTV cameras and smart-phones fitted on their chests stops and checks every passing vehicle. Such a deliberate act of harassment meted to commuters in the name of ‘law and order’ is a wilful act of invasion and intrusion of privacy upon individuals and organisations despite no law and order problem in the area,” read the statement.
Maintaining that the NSCN (IM) and civil society organisations are keeping an eye on hurdles caused to civilians while trying to harass and wage psychological wars upon the NSCN, it said AR’s act is against the spirit of peace talks.
It also accused the AR of harassing the commuters, especially since 2020, through various strategies like recording vehicles numbers taking the road, gathering personal details including phone number, detaining commuters, checking baggage, and frisking during night time on different pretext to “extract information about the movements and identities of NSCN members and well-wishers”. It went on to claim that “checking and frisking” were carried out without following Covid-19 safety measures despite high prevalence of the disease among the AR personnel.
“This is how the AR tries to instil fear psychosis to the inhabitants and commuters and make the commuters submit to their diktats,” it stated, adding that they see no logic in setting up an outpost at Doyapur while the Indo-Naga peace process is going on.
Claiming that “the raids against the NSCN members and establishments are done under the directions of the MHA”, it called upon the GoI to ensure that every clause of the peace agreement is respected by stopping AR’s activities.
“The setting up of the AR outpost at Dimapur-Hebron road is a blatant violation of the agreement and the NSCN strongly objects to the provocative activities of the AR personnel at Doyapur main road and reminds the GoI for its withdrawal in the larger interest of the Indo-Naga peace process,” it stated.