The Nagaland Legislative Assembly (NLA) marked its 60th anniversary today at the Assembly Secretariat Complex, celebrating under the theme, “Embracing Innovation and Celebrating Legacy.” During the event, former Chief Minister Dr. SC Jamir delivered a speech titled “Down the memory lane,” where he elaborated on the historical reasons for fixing the Assembly’s strength at 60 seats.
“During the negotiation between the representatives of the Naga Peoples Convention and the Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, one of the tricky questions was composition of Nagaland Legislative Assembly,” he said, adding, “In 1960 the population of Nagaland was only three and half lakhs. If the Assembly Constituencies were done on the basis of population, then the strength of the Nagaland Legislative Assembly would be less than twenty, and it would be miniature which cannot meet the political aspirations of the people.”
“Finally, it was decided to fix the strength of the Nagaland Legislative Assembly as enshrined in Article 170. Composition of the Legislative Assemblies (1) Subject to the provisions of article 333 the Legislative Assembly consists of not more than five hundred and not less than sixty, members chosen by direct election from the territorial constituencies in the state,” he added.
The anniversary celebration also included an inauguration of a botanical garden by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and the unveiling of a monument dedicated to the first Speaker of the NLA, TN Angami.
Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio inaugurated the botanical garden and unveiled the monument named after the first Speaker of Nagaland Legislative Assembly TN Angami.