Imphal, June 26 : Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh today said the state government was not prepared to accept the demand of an alternative administrative arrangement for Nagas living in Manipur as sought by some Naga organisations.
Ibobi Singh’s categorical rejection of the demand came six days ahead of the scheduled meeting of officials of the state government, Union home ministry and representatives of the United Naga Council (UNC) and the Committee for Alternate Arrangement, a Naga body at Senapati district headquarters.
The home ministry convened the third round of meeting on the demand at Senapati on June 30. The date was fixed after Naga organisations, led by the UNC, served an ultimatum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to convene the meeting by June 30 or face a backout by the Naga bodies in future talks on the issue.
Earlier, the third round of talks was scheduled for May 30.
However, it was indefinitely postponed following a request from the Ibobi Singh government in the wake of Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio’s visit on May 28 to open the Manipur unit of the Nagaland political party, Naga People’s Front, at a function in Senapati.
“We have a firm stand on the issue. We made it very clear to the Union home ministry that the state government would not accept the demand for an alternative administrative arrangement for the Nagas of Manipur,” Ibobi Singh told the media in his office here this afternoon.
He said India being a democratic country, anyone or any group could make any demand. “However, as far as the Manipur government is concerned, there is no reason to accept the UNC demand,” the chief minister said.
Despite opposition from the United Committee Manipur (UCM) in taking part in the upcoming talks by the Manipur government, Ibobi Singh is sending an official team, headed by chief secretary D.S. Poonia, to the Senapati talks.
The UNC, in a memorandum earlier this week, urged the chief minister not to take part in the proposed talks.
The UNC and other Naga bodies raised the demand for an alternative administrative arrangement for the Nagas in Manipur after the government prevented NSCN (I-M) leader Th. Muivah from entering Manipur and the death of two students during police crackdown on Muivah’s supporters at Mao Gate last year.
The first round of talks was held in Delhi in September and the second round was organised at Senapati in December last year.