The office of the Naga Students’ Federation (NSF), housed at the historical Naga Club Building in the heart of Nagalad’s capital Kohima, was vandalised by unidentified miscreants in the early hours of Saturday, officials said.
Along with four office rooms of the building, at least eight adjoining shops were also completely demolished, police officials familiar with the matter said. NSF president Kegwayhun Tep told HT that the student body received information about the incident at around 4.30am. The NSF filed a first information report (FIR) with the Kohima police. PRO Kohima police said that the authorities received report of the vandalism at 5.30am and investigation is on.
The Naga Club Building, which is said to have been constructed in the 1930s, has been occupied by the NSF since 1983 with the consent of the then Naga Club officials. The Naga Club, founded in 1918 by a group of educated Nagas during the then British rule, went on to provide the socio-political foundation for the Naga nationalist movement. In 1929, the Naga Club submitted a memorandum to the Simon Commission asking that Nagas be given a choice of self-determination after the British departure from India.
As per the accounts of a former NSF leader, the building was taken over by the government after the Club went dormant for some time. But members who revived the club could not reoccupy the building, therefore, they said to have approached the NSF to take over the matter and the latter in 1983 occupied the building.
{{/usCountry}}As per the accounts of a former NSF leader, the building was taken over by the government after the Club went dormant for some time. But members who revived the club could not reoccupy the building, therefore, they said to have approached the NSF to take over the matter and the latter in 1983 occupied the building.
{{/usCountry}}Issues surrounding the building cropped up around 2018 when the NSF was preparing to hold a 100 years commemorative programme of the Naga Club when a group of people including some descendants of the club members revived the Naga Club. In August 2022, the recently revived Naga Club issued an eviction notice to the NSF, however, the federation was of the view that the revived body should gain the mandate of the Naga people before claiming ownership of the building, which it said is a legacy of the original Naga Club.
Presently, the Naga Club Building houses the offices of the NSF, the All Nagaland College Students’ Union and the Kohima Press Club.
“This (Naga Club Building) is not just our office, but it belongs to the entire Naga people. We are very sad that it was vandalised and in the process, documents of not only NSF but the entire Naga people have been damaged which cannot be restored,” the NSF president said.
“We have complete trust on the authorities and we are positive that justice will be delivered,” Tep added.
Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio who is currently in Delhi took to Twitter to condemn the incident. “I strongly condemn the vandalism of the building in Kohima which has NSF and ANCSU office and some shops. Respect for private and public properties is fundamental in a civilised society. I appeal to all right-thinking citizens to maintain peace and harmony,” Rio tweeted.
Meanwhile, an emergency presidential meeting of the NSF has been convened on Saturday afternoon where all the unit leaders are expected to attend.