After a vicious election campaign during which it had branded the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) an ‘outsider’ in Nagaland while claiming that it ‘never encouraged the BJP to set foot in our land,’ the Naga People’s Front (NPF) on Fri. did a barefaced volte-face by stating that it was still in alliance with the former.
The NPF issued a statement on Fri. seeking to explain what it stated was ‘the factual position’ concerning the status of the Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN). “It has been observed that due to rampant circulation of rumours by certain sections of people with vested interests in the social media, doubts and misgivings have been created in the minds of the people about the actual status of NPF party and its alliance partners of DAN viz: BJP, JDU including NPP now.
“Therefore, in order to put matters in its proper perspective, the NPF party hereby reiterates its resolution no. 1 taken by the central executive council (CEC) on 23rd of January 2018 which, inter alia reads that: ‘considering the urgency to create a congenial atmosphere for the ongoing political dialogue between the government of India and the Naga national workers (NSCN I-M/ NNPGs) for political solution, the CEC considered it necessary to review the matter and resolved to maintain the earlier status of having alliance with BJP,’” the statement read.
This ‘factual position as explained,’ it stated, should clarify all ‘doubts and confusions’ once and for all.
In the run-up to the recently concluded Nagaland assembly elections, the BJP and the NPF were engaged in a vitriolic verbal war. The NPF’s chief, Dr. Shürhozelie Liezietsu, had even declared the 2018 Nagaland assembly elections as a choice between ‘outsiders’ and ‘Naga identity’ while asking voters not to ‘gamble with their faith, culture and identity.’
On the other hand, the BJP had swatted aside Liezietsu’s tirade as a ‘classic case of political dementia’ while reminding him of the 15-year alliance that existed between the two parties prior to the 2018 Nagaland assembly elections. (Eastern Mirror News)