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Lok Sabha elections 2019: Oppn NPF wants alliance with ruling NDPP in Nagaland for LS polls; latter rebuffs
The NDPP, a major partner of the ruling coalition of which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is also a part, has, however, rebuffed the move as ‘absurd’.
In a surprising move, 18 of the 26 legislators of opposition Naga People’s Front (NPF) in Nagaland have sought an ‘alliance’ with the ruling Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) for the coming Lok Sabha election.
The NDPP, a major partner of the ruling coalition of which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is also a part, has, however, rebuffed the move as ‘absurd’.
Nagaland has one Lok Sabha seat, which is at present held by the NDPP.
On Wednesday, 18 NPF legislators wrote a letter to the party’s legislature party leader TR Zeliang asking him to “initiate necessary steps” to finalise “modalities with the NDPP leadership” to form a “regional coalition” before the upcoming parliamentary elections.
The same evening, the NPF issued a press clarification refuting a news report about a standoff among party legislators and “asserted that all the 26 MLAs were intact and sailing together in unity”.
“I can’t officially confirm the existence of the letter as the NPF is yet to receive the same. We have heard about it only from social media,” NPF spokesperson Achumbemo Kikon said.
“We can’t take any decision on it till the letter reaches the party leadership. The party is planning a meeting of MLAs on Friday evening to know about the intentions of the legislators on the issue,” he added.
NPF, which was in power in Nagaland from 2003 till 2018, had a 15-year alliance with the BJP in the state before the national party decided to sever ties and have a pre-poll tie-up with the newly-formed NDPP ahead of last year’s assembly election.
Though the NPF emerged as the single largest party last year winning 26 of the 60 assembly seats, the NDPP, which won 18 seats, and the BJP with 12 formed the government based on their pre-poll tie-up.
Amid these developments, the NDPP termed the proposal of the NPF legislators for a “regional coalition” with the ruling party as “absurd and incomprehensible” as the party still has an alliance with the BJP.
In a communiqué issued on Thursday by NDPP’s media and communication committee, the ruling party accused NPF of trying to create division in the People’s Democratic Alliance (PDA) government of which the JD (U) and National People’s Party are also part.
“The NDPP puts on record that its leaders have never met with any of the leaders of the opposition NPF to discuss such matters and has never intended or intend to do so in the future,” it said.
In another development, former chief minister KL Chisi, who had joined the BJP ahead of last year’s assembly polls resigned from the party with immediate effect.
In a letter addressed to the BJP’s Nagaland unit chief Temjen Imna Along Longkumer, Chisi accused the national party of ignoring the interest of the Naga people including trying to find a final solution to the ongoing Naga peace talks soon.
