The Rising People’s Party (RPP) has once again emphasized that the 14th Nagaland Legislative Assembly (NLA) should take the lead in the ongoing Naga peace talks.
In a statement issued by the party, it was argued that the assertion that elected members of the state assembly are bound by the Constitution of India, thus incapable of leading the Indo-Naga political settlement, “betrays a limited understanding of constitutional possibilities.” The RPP believes that this view fails to recognize the flexibility inherent in the Constitution of India.
“The Indian National Congress (INC) of pre-independent India was itself a movement and a political party,” the statement noted. The party drew attention to the historical context, explaining that in elections held under the Government of India Act, 1919, “except for the INC, almost every political party participated in the elections.” The RPP highlighted that in 1934, the INC “for the first time participated in the pan-India Central Legislative Assembly election,” and in 1945, even Jawaharlal Nehru was a nominated member of the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi.
The RPP also discussed the “Agreed Position” and the “Framework Agreement,” describing them as drafts of “Constitutional Reforms WITHIN the Constitution of India.” The party pointed out that the Congress (and others) pushed for reforms both from within the constitutional framework as elected members and from outside through mass-based advocacy. “This strategy led to incremental constitutional reforms through the decades – most notably, the GoI Act 1909, 1919, and 1935 – eventually leading to the ultimate reform, the INDIA INDEPENDENCE ACT 1947,” the statement explained.
The RPP urged that the members of the 14th NLA should not feel constrained by their oath to the Constitution of India, explaining that the Constitution is a “Flexible organism.”
“The MLAs’ imagined incapacity to lead the peace talks is without substance,” the party added. The RPP stressed that the current MLAs should not view themselves primarily as politicians, but as nationalists, echoing the actions of the 12 Democratic Party MLAs who resigned in 1964 to stand firm for the Naga cause.