CAA camouflaged by ILP to deceive Nagas

Dimapur, 17th December, 2019

As Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) 2019 becomes Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), it has been met with different reactions in Nagaland. While Nagaland BJP had wholeheartedly welcomed CAA, the NDPP and NPF after allowing their respective MPs to vote in support of CAB are still hesitant to clearly justify their decision and many CSOs are in confusion over CAA exemption based on ILP. NPCC however rejects this conditional Citizenship (Amendment) Act exemption for Nagaland based on ILP since it’s just a plain hoax to fool our people.

It may be mentioned that when all political parties in Nagaland met Home Minister Amit Shah on 3rd Dec 2019, the unanimous demand was for total exemption of CAB from Nagaland. But when CAB was passed in Lok Sabha, exemption was granted on the basis of states having ILP and areas covered under Sixth Schedule.

This innocuous exemption may have pacified some sections of the society but it must be remembered that the non effective implementation of ILP over the years has already resulted in silent invasion of outside people settling in protected area which can no longer be ignored.

The state government through Notification of 9th Dec 2019 has brought Dimapur district under ILP coverage with cutoff date being 21/11/1979. However, there are still plenty of grey areas where the state government is unable to address the concerns of all affected people and the issue may get prolonged leading to bitterness and division among the people.

Given BJPs penchant for scrapping protective laws in its quest for one nation one law, what if it decides to scrap the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation (BEFR) 1873 that provides for ILP, then CAA will be automatically applicable to Nagaland. Moreover, Nagaland cannot afford to live in isolation under false notion of being safeguarded by ILP.

Our neighbouring states are already on fire and students in universities across the nation are being brutally crushed by police for protesting against CAA. At this juncture, our silence will only encourage the BJP government to crush dissenting voices with all the might of government machinery.

We must remember that CAA has given a lethal blow to the secular foundation of the Indian Constitution. It marks the victory of Hindutva forces that is against the liberal and pluralistic ethos of India that had withstood the test of time.

Today, the very idea of nationhood is being based on religion which is taking the nation on a course to the point of no return. CAA which discriminates grant of citizenship on religious lines not only offends Article 14 but also the very founding principle of our constitution as Secular Republic.

The act of exempting states/areas under Inner Line Permit (ILP) and Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution is complete eyewash since any immigrant getting asylum in any part of the country and after obtaining citizenship can easily travel and sneak into those protected areas to settle down.

High time for people of Nagaland to wake up before it’s too late. All Tribe Hoho’s, CSOs and student bodies should pay more attention to the wolves at our door in guise of CAA that is camouflaged by ILP. Both regional parties i.e. NDPP and NPF have betrayed the mandate of the people and should therefore merge with BJP rather than take Naga’s for a ride with their constant political opportunism that is bartering away the rights of future generations.

Issued by:
Communication Deptt,
NPCC (Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee)