Kohima, Feb 11: The Working Committee of the Naga National Political Groups (WC-NNPGs) on February 10 asserted that the Framework Agreement signed with the Centre cannot be reopened, stating that it already provides for a comprehensive political settlement addressing the core issues of the Naga people, including concerns over ancestral homeland.
In a statement, the committee said the Agreed Position signed with the Government of India envisages the formation of a Frontier Nagaland Territorial Authority (FNTA), a long-standing demand of the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation (ENPO). It described the arrangement as a correction of historical injustice aimed at addressing decades of neglect in eastern Nagaland through administrative and economic reforms.
While acknowledging the FNTA provision, the WC-NNPGs maintained that the broader Indo-Naga political issue covers the entire Naga ancestral homeland and cannot be treated in isolation.
The committee recalled that seven Naga groups signed the Agreed Position with the Centre on November 17, 2017, and that negotiations were formally concluded on October 31, 2019. It said the negotiated charters have been submitted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Clarifying its stand, the WC-NNPGs said the “Status Paper” includes Nagas from Nagaland, Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, and forms part of the peace process framework. It added that any separate agenda pursued by the Nagaland government or appointment of a new interlocutor would be a different matter.
Reiterating that the peace talks have concluded and core political issues have been thoroughly deliberated, the committee said any attempt to dilute the Agreed Position would be unacceptable. It urged senior national leaders to move towards signing the final political agreement in line with the negotiated terms, stating that durable peace depends on honourable and practical solutions.
The WC-NNPGs also noted that the Indo-Naga issue has seen over 80 rounds of negotiations across 18 years, with the first breakthrough in 1997 and a ceasefire in 1994. It added that the Centre has rejected NSCN (IM)’s demand for a separate Naga flag and constitution, and described the 2017 Agreed Position as the most realistic pathway to resolving the long-standing political issue.
