Unholy alliance: BJP and NPF
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: December 23 2017 -

It is in records that BJP, in the run up to the 11th Manipur Legislative Assembly election, announced that it would not form any pre-poll or post-poll alliance with the Naga People’s Front (NPF), and no doubt, BJP did not forge any alliance with any political party including NPF but they literally took a u-turn after the election results were announced.

Given the fact that BJP won just 21 seats in the 60-member State Assembly, people had sympathetic understanding of the alliance it forged with NPF in their efforts to form Government while conveniently overlooking its election promise.

Nobody, within and outside the party, raised a single noise then when the alliance was forged considering BJP’s desperate situation to secure the magic number and NPF’s sheer determination to prevent Congress party from retaining power.

In fact, the two party’s common rivalry or rather antagonism with Congress party was one major factor which brought BJP and NPF together.

It is now history how BJP with the help of NPF, NPP and of course NDA’s constituent members out-maneuvered Congress which secured 28 seats and formed the Government.

Since then, many Congress MLAs have defected to BJP and the party and its coalition partners are now enjoying a comfortable majority in the State Assembly.

Perhaps with the exception of Congress party, nobody was uncomfortable with the unholy alliance between BJP and NPF until the Framework Agreement signed between the Government of India and NSCN-IM came into the picture.

More precisely, the alliance came under intense scrutiny when Chief Minister N Biren convened an all political parties meeting on October 28 to discuss about possible impacts of any solution New Delhi and NSCN-IM may work out based on the Framework Agreement on Manipur.

On the same day, NPF Manipur State unit pledged that it would work relentlessly for integration of contiguous Naga inhabited areas.

Apparently there are two groups of NPF Manipur unit, one led by Awangbow Newmai and the other led by Morung Makunga.

While Awangbow Newmai claimed that he was present at the all political parties meeting, the other group led by Morung Makunga stayed away from the same meeting.

Whereas the group led by Morung Makunga openly declared that integration of Naga inhabited areas is their political goal, the other group led by Awangbow Newmai has neither endorsed the demand for Naga integration nor pledged its commitment to the integrity of Manipur even though Awangbow Newmai commented on the floor of the Manipur Legislative Assembly that the Government of India would not come out with any solution to the Naga issue which would not be acceptable to other communities.

This is where NPF’s (particularly Awangbow Newmai’s group) position comes under intense scrutiny.

NPF is one political party floated at the first place to struggle for Naga integration.

Then one obvious question arises.

How can two political parties (sic BJP and NPF); one committed to protect Manipur’s integrity and the other equally determined to bring about integration of Naga inhabited areas go together?

But then nothing is impossible in (electoral) politics.

This is where electoral politics becomes an object of intense hatred. N Biren who is heading the coalition Government swore repeatedly that the State Government and BJP Manipur Pradesh would never accept any solution to the Naga issue which impinges upon the integrity of Manipur, and the NPF MLAs have neither objected nor endorsed the Chief Minister’s position.

Does their silence mean acquiescence or have they parted ways with the NPF?

This is a million dollar question.