Four months after the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang) walked out on a ceasefire with the Centre, the Narendra Modi government on Monday signed a “historic” peace accord with the principle faction of the Naga insurgent outfit led by Chairman Isak Chishi Swu and General Secretary Thuingaleng Muivah.
In his speech at 7, Race Course Road, this evening, Modi stressed that the NSCN(IM) “would play a significant role” in the future development of Nagaland, but it should not be taken as a signal that the insurgent group, which has been in a ceasefire agreement with the Centre since 1997, would play any political part in the state yet.
The Centre-NSCN(IM) peace talks, which progressed steadily in the course of the 18 years, remained stuck for a while on the issue of territoriality, with the NSCN(IM) steadfastly sticking to Nagalim, or Greater Nagaland, that has sought to incorporate the Naga-dominated hill districts of Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam.