Tribal hohos threaten to boycott ULB election in Nagaland

Dimapur: The tribal hohos of Nagaland on Monday resolved to “boycott” the upcoming urban local bodies (ULB) elections if the state government fails to fulfill its demands in connection with the Nagaland Municipal Act 2001, and that the polling be “deferred” until the Act is reviewed and rewritten.

In a letter addressed to the chief minister of the state, the tribal hohos updated that it had adopted a 10-point resolution at its consultative meeting in Kohima.

Terming the “Nagaland Municipal Act 2001” a burrowed Act, the tribal hohos said that any part that infringes Article 371 (A) should be “reviewed and rewritten” in complete consonance with the voice of the Naga people and that the word “omission/omitted” used in the subsequent amendments of Act in respect to “Land and Building Taxation”, “Scheduled Caste” and others be substituted with “deletion/deleted”.

It stated that the proposed reservation of the office of the Chairperson for women should be revoked “so that the elected members can elect the rightful candidate who is a Scheduled Tribe Indigenous Inhabitant of Nagaland to the office of the Chairperson from among themselves, be it man or woman, democratically”.

“The government of Nagaland should give a ‘Clean Chit/Guarantee’ to the people of Nagaland that ‘33% Women Reservation’ does not infringe Article 371-A before rushing to conduct the urban local body election,” read one of the resolutions.

While demanding the government to clearly specify the duration of 33% reservation for women, the tribal hohos suggested that it “should not exceed more than two tenures”.

“Respective tribal hohos and the frontal organization shall oversee respective jurisdictions and ensure that till the government fulfills the demands of the tribal hohos, no candidate files the nomination so that ULB election is not held,” it stated.

“Any person or persons violating the resolutions of the tribal hohos, he/she shall be dealt with appropriate action as per respective customary laws,” it added.

The hohos also demanded that the state government bring the Joint Inquiry Commission report of the 2017 Dimapur incident to the knowledge of the concerned people and groups.

Meanwhile, the tribal hohos assured its co-operation in the conduct of the ULB election if their demanded are fulfilled.