PM Modi Tasks Intelligence Bureau Chief With Resetting Naga Peace Talks

NDTV
August 18, 2020

The Prime Minister's Office is "disturbed" over the standoff in the Naga peace talks between Nagaland Governor RN Ravi, who is also the centre's interlocutor, and various rebel groups over the past few months and has asked the Intelligence Bureau chief to take over, top sources have told NDTV. Intelligence Bureau Director Arvind Kumar has been tasked to bring the apparently derailed talks back on track.

"Over the last six years RN Ravi, in his capacity as interlocutor, had been talking to various Naga groups. But in the past 10 or 11 months, things have not been going well," a senior government official said.

According to the official, the PMO has also asked IB Special Director Akshay Kumar Mishra to join the firefighting effort. The centre is believed to be particularly concerned by what appears to be a three-way feud in Nagaland - between the NSCN(IM), the largest of the rebel groups, RN Ravi and the new National Naga Political Groups (NNPG).

The fact Governor Ravi openly targeted the elected government in Nagaland, which is a BJP alliance partner, has also not gone down well.

Mr Ravi, in his Independence Day speech, had said: "Nagaland is endowed with one of the finest human and natural resources. Unfortunately, today it has the dubious distinction of the worst-performing state in the country, including the northeast region, on almost all significant indicators of human development".

Over the past 11 months, the rift between Mr Ravi and various Naga groups has been widening.

"In October last year a consensus was to be reached but it did not materialise. The centre retaliated and launched a crackdown on NSCN(IM) cadres and leaders. This upset Naga leaders," an official said, adding that the perception that the interlocutor was favouring the NNPG over NSCN(IM) did not help matters.

The NNPG had in March urged the interlocutor to sign the delayed peace talks at the earliest "with or without" the NSCN-IM on board.

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