The Western Naga Youth Front (WNYF) has strongly condemned what it described as a “horrific incident of intimidation, physical assault, and extortion” involving an innocent couple and their younger siblings, allegedly carried out by operatives of the NSCN (Khango) group.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the WNYF said it “expresses its deepest solidarity with the innocent couple and their younger siblings” who were subjected to the traumatic incident. The couple, identified as a union of the Chang and Sangtam communities and bonafide members of the Eastern Naga Peoples’ Union Dimapur (ENPUD), were reportedly “manhandled, threatened, and coerced into signing a bond under duress, agreeing to an arbitrary fine of Rs 3 lakhs.” The group further alleged that they “were also robbed of their hard-earned savings at their residence.”
Calling the act “nothing short of criminal extortion and human rights violation,” the WNYF highlighted the wrongful targeting of the woman, who was “a legitimate customer care executive for eBay, a detail verified by the police post-incident.”
According to the group, she was harassed under “unfounded suspicions” and instead of being supported, was “harassed and robbed, a disgraceful reflection of how far we have strayed from the values we claim to uphold.”
The youth front said, “We condemn in the strongest possible terms this act of violence and psychological terror,” noting that such actions “go against the very spirit of the Naga struggle which was founded on truth, self-respect, and unity.”
Appealing for broader support, WNYF urged “all right-thinking Naga citizens, civil societies, and human rights bodies to denounce such behaviour that exploits our own people under the guise of authority.” It further called upon the Ceasefire Monitoring Group and law enforcement agencies “to take immediate cognizance of this incident and ensure the safety, justice, and dignity of the victims.”
The WNYF stated, “The time has come for us to speak not just against illegal taxation but also against the misuse of power by any group that claims to represent the Naga cause yet acts in ways that divide, intimidate, and oppress.”
Expressing solidarity, the statement reaffirmed the WNYF’s support to “Chang Union Dimapur and ENPUD in the pursuance of justice.”