Congress has alleged that Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has misled the nation by saying that Chief Ministers of Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh were called for a meeting to discuss the recent Naga peace agreement with NSCN(IM). The party said the meeting being referred to the Niti Ayog meeting where amendments to Land Bill were discussed.
Briefing media in New Delhi, party spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said Prime Minister Narendra Modi not taking the three Chief Ministers into confidence is a gross violation of principles of cooperative federalism. He alleged that it is for the first time in the history of India where there was a peace agreement which was not discussed in the Cabinet, and the Home Ministry was not informed.
Saying that Congress welcomes any initiative to find lasting solution to the Naga problem, Mr Surjewala said some people in the government want to politicise the matter. The Chief Ministers of Assam, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh who were present in the briefing demanded that the details of the peace accord be made public.
Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi asked why is the government keeping such an important agreement as secret. Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh said he will fight tooth and nail if a single inch of Manipur’s territorial area is taken.