The Five-Tribes Committee on Review of Reservation Policy (CORRP), along with apex tribal bodies and their youth and student organisations, has warned it will abstain from all state government functions including the upcoming Independence Day celebrations unless the state government addresses concerns over the composition and functioning of the Reservation Review Commission (RRC).
The decision was taken during a joint meeting held on Saturday at Hotel URA, Kohima, attended by representatives of the Angami, Ao, Lotha, Rengma, and Sema tribes.
In a set of unanimously adopted resolutions, the meeting reiterated its opposition to the inclusion of members from civil society organisations in the RRC, reaffirming its earlier consensus — reached during a June 3 meeting with the state government — that the review body should be “an independent commission composed solely of government officials or retired bureaucrats.”
CORRP convenor Tesinlo Semy told reporters, “The inclusion of civil society organisations compromises their independence and impartiality.” He added that the committee demands a panel “for an unbiased review” made up entirely of serving or retired bureaucrats.
Zhimomi also disputed recent state claims that the five “advanced” tribes hold 64% of government jobs, calling the figures “wildly imaginary.” He said CORRP has its own data, which will be released later.
The resolutions agreed to the state cabinet’s August 6 decision to set a six-month deadline for the RRC to submit its recommendations but stressed that any delay or extension would be “totally unacceptable.” They further stated that the state government must implement the RRC’s recommendations immediately upon submission, “without waiting for the completion of the national census.”
“If the state government remains adamant on interlinking the RRC outcome with the next census, then the backward tribes reservation must be suspended till such time,” the resolution stated.
The meeting resolved to convey these decisions to the state government immediately and warned that if there is no “satisfactory or nil” response, the five tribal bodies, their frontal organisations, and sub-units will resort to non-participation in all state government functions, beginning with the Independence Day celebrations on August 15.