A delegation of the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organization (ENPO) on Tuesday met Union home minister Amit Shah to apprise him of their demands including a separate state “Frontier Nagaland”, the outfit said in a statement.
The ENPO statement said Shah highlighted “a clear road map for an amicable, legislative and sustainable solution for eastern Nagaland”, which will include consultation with the people of the region and the state government.
The group said Shah indicated that he may visit eastern Nagaland by January 2023.
The group, which represents seven tribes from six districts of eastern Nagaland, has been demanding since 2010 that the Centre carve out a separate state, “Frontier Nagaland”, from the state’s eastern part on the ground that this region hadn’t seen much development fr decades.
Nagaland BJP’s Mahila Morcha president and Rajya Sabha MP from Nagaland S Phangnon Konyak and senior home ministry officials were present at the meeting, the group said.
The organization has submitted several representations to the Centre and recently threatened that its supporters will abstain from participating in any election process if the central government doesn’t address its demand.
The state assembly elections are due early next year.