DIMAPUR, Dec 22 - All tribal apex bodies and civil society organisations of Nagaland have decided to reject the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
This was one of the resolutions adopted at a joint meeting of all tribal apex bodies and civil society organisations held here recently, convener of Joint Committee on Prevention of Illegal Immigrants (JCPI) K Ghokheto Chopi and secretary Tia Longchar said in a statement.
The meeting was of the opinion that protective clauses like the Inner Line Permit (ILP) and Article 371 A will not protect Nagaland once the CAA is imposed in the neighbouring States. Nagaland has been exempted from the Act.
The civil society organisations asked the ruling Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party and Opposition Naga People�s Front to come clean about why the MPs representing the people of Nagaland from the two parties voted in favour of the CAA in Parliament.
They warned that the MPs would be held responsible if the future of Naga people is jeopardised because of the CAA.
While expressing solidarity with the anti-CAA movements across the Northeast and other parts of the country, the meeting condemned the killing of indigenous protesters by the Assam police and by the �immigrants� in Tripura. It decided to cooperate with other States on the issue of CAA under the aegis of North East Indigenous People�s Forum.
Expressing their firm stand against having two cut-off dates with regard to the ILP in Dimapur district, the organisations pointed out that the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873 had come along with Statehood on December 1, 1963.
They said December 1, 1963 should be the cut-off date for the ILP since indigenous certificates were being issued on basis of it. �This is non-negotiable,� they asserted.
The meeting also decided to serve an ultimatum to the State government to submit the final report of the Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland Commission before January 31 next year and issue the final notification by February 29.
It condemned the memorandum submitted by some non-local groups with �vested interests� to the State government requesting not to bring Dimapur under the ILP regime.
The meeting said the appeal was a misrepresentation of facts and a mischievous attempt to sow seeds of strife among different communities.
The JCPI said it had in the past consulted non-Naga communities and considered them as fellow stakeholders in the demand for implementing the ILP in Dimapur. It said it was ever ready to reason and sort out any genuine grievances or doubts of any community in Dimapur.
