The newly appointed Longvibu of the Naga Army, Lt Gen A. Raman-MM, MC, has reaffirmed the Eastern Flank’s commitment to both political and armed resistance, saying the “spirit of the ceasefire agreement” with the Government of India has ceased to exist.
Raman made the statement in a speech delivered at a felicitation programme at Mt Horeb Camp on July 29, days after the NSCN (IM) Eastern Flank announced the formation of a provisional government and declared that it would continue political and armed resistance in pursuit of Naga sovereignty.
Referring to the Indo-Naga peace process, Raman alleged that the Government of India had betrayed the Framework Agreement signed on August 3, 2015, and said the ceasefire had effectively ceased to exist after the Centre’s three-month ultimatum in 2019 over the issues of a separate Naga flag and constitution.
The peace talks, he said, had continued for more than 28 years, and questioned whether the prolonged political dialogue had delivered justice to the Nagas or weakened the Naga nationalist movement.
Raman also alleged that Indian security forces had killed Naga Army personnel during the ceasefire period, describing such killings as unjustifiable while political negotiations between the two sides were continuing.
He said that when political dialogue is subjected to “force and might” rather than justice and trust, Naga nationalists must continue political as well as armed resistance to safeguard what he described as the sovereign existence of the Naga nation.
The remarks come amid a widening split within the NSCN (IM)’s military establishment. The Eastern Flank, led by senior dissident figures including Raman and Hs Ramsan, recently declared a provisional government under Ikato I Chishi Swu as chairman and rejected earlier expulsion orders issued by the NSCN (IM) leadership against the dissident leaders.
The Eastern Flank has also criticised the ongoing peace process and the NSCN (IM) leadership’s approach to negotiations with the Centre, maintaining that the Naga political issue should not be settled within the Constitution of India.
Raman makes fresh claim on Tirong Aboh killing
In his speech, Raman also made a fresh allegation concerning the 2019 killing of Arunachal Pradesh MLA Tirong Aboh and others.
Raman claimed that the order for the assassination came directly from then-Longvibu Gen Anthony Ningkhan Shimray. He further alleged that after the operation, Shimray placed responsibility on the soldiers who carried it out rather than accepting responsibility through the chain of command.
The allegation has been made by Raman and could not be independently verified from the material available for this report. The killing of Aboh and others in May 2019 had been attributed by investigating agencies to suspected NSCN (IM) cadres.
Raman said the incident had raised questions over the integrity of the Naga Army’s chain of command.
The new Longvibu, who said he had served the Naga national movement for 45 years, also criticised what he described as internal division and fratricidal conflict among Naga groups.
He called on Naga national workers and the public to remain committed to what he described as the sovereign existence of the Naga nation, while warning against what he termed attempts to bring the Naga political issue to an end within the Union and Constitution of India.
The speech comes as the Eastern Flank seeks to establish its own political structure following its July 21 decision to form a provisional government, adding another layer to the continuing divisions within the Naga political movement.
