Imphal, Jul 17: Strongly reacting to the statement given to the press by the Secretary in charge of the Board of Secondary Education, Manipur, the Chairperson of Nagaland Board of School Education, Mrs Nini Meru has written to the Chairman of BSEM to look into the matter and set things right.

The matter has reached the Chief Minister's office and a meeting was held today to discuss what course of action should be taken up, said a well placed source.

The Secretary in charge of BSEM, Ph Nandakumar Sharma, on being contacted by the press, had earlier stated that the Chairperson of NBSE was not amenable to the proposal to affiliate the private schools in the Naga dominated districts of Manipur with the NBSE during the 4th Zonal Meeting of the NE Zone of the Council of Boards of School Education in India held on July 13 at Guwahati.

In a written representation addressed to the Chairman of BSEM, Mrs Meru said that the only resolution passed in the meeting was to insist that the Ministry of Human Resources and Development uphold its policy which is, "school boards (and higher secondary councils) are not mere examining bodies but should be responsible for all spheres relating to school education." The only press release issued at the meeting was to condole the deaths and injuries due to the recent bomb blasts in Mumbai and Srinagar, said the representation and added no other decrees, decisions, commitments or statements were made or passed in the meeting.

The BSEM representative, Ph Nandakumar had no authority to issue any press release(s) on behalf of COBSE, Asserted Nini Meru.

On the other hand it is a privilege when institutions from different parts of the country request affiliation to a board for it is an indication of the board's high standards and status.

Efforts to contact Ph Nandakumar to get his side of the story proved futile as he was unreachable.

Acknowledging the statement of Mrs Meru, the Tangkhul Katamnao Saklong today said that the statement of Ph Nandakumar was an attempt to create confusion and chaos amongst the Naga people.

In a statement, TKS said that Ph Nandakumar's statement was misleading, violated decorum and twisted the deliberations of the meeting to suit his own purpose.

The student body further said that it is aware of the practical and technical difficulties in switching from one educational board to another but added that it is satisfied with the development so far.

TKS will never accept educational imposition said the statement and added that it is surprising that the renunciation of BSEM by the Nagas should be construed as hurting the sentiments of others.

Training its guns on the State Government, TKS said that it has been endorsing and funding the sectarian movement of only the majority while completely ignoring the basic and essential interest of the minorities.

No one with a clear conscience can deny the distortions in Manipuri history, said TKS and added that imposition of Meitei Mayek and even dress codes are purely Talibanic going against all democratic norms and peaceful co-existence.

Toeing a similar line, the Naga Students' Federation in a statement said that Ph Nandakumar tried to mislead the people through concocted propaganda.

In a statement, NSF said that the aspirations of the Nagas to live under one administrative system and the steps taken up towards this goal cannot be defeated by vested interest elements.

The decision of the Southern Nagas to affiliate with the NBSE has been justified after the Meiteis tried to impose their script on the hill people, said NSF in a statement.

Reiterating its earlier stand on the affiliation issue, NSF urged the Government of Nagaland to realise the attempts of the Manipuris to sabotage the aspirations of the Naga students and expedite all possible steps to accommodate Naga students into its board.