Nagaland Govt’s position on ULBs ‘grossly misunderstood’: Kenye

No timeframe, but panel soon to enact a new law

Morung Express News
Kohima | April 28

The State Government’s position on Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) elections and the repeal of Nagaland Municipal Act (NMC) 2001 has been ‘grossly misunderstood,’ and the government is aware of the urgency of creating a new Act, maintained Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Power, KG Kenye on Thursday.

“I wish to clear the air on matters relevant to the Court and the State Government’s position, which was grossly misunderstood by our people on this particular issue,” the Minister said, addressing a press conference held this morning at Hotel Japfü, Kohima, and clarifying the State Government’s stance  on contentious ULBs issues as well as the in toto repeal of the NMC Act 2001.

The decision of the State Government on March 28 to repeal the NMC Act, despite an ongoing Supreme Court case and directives, has raised eyebrows and apprehensions.

According to the Minister, despite the State Government’s efforts to amend the NMC Act at least 4-5 times, it failed to fulfill the desire of the people, and several hurdles were faced over the years to constitute ULBs.

“And after 22 years, we have to take a relook at the entire Act,” Kenye said. Accordingly, it was repealed completely to go for a new Act with “our own laws and regulations” framed by “our own people to suit our conditions and situations,” he added.

He maintained that the legislature’s decision came after taking everything into account and concluding that it was not possible to hold polls, as unlike other issues, elections require mass participation of the people.

The government could feel the pulse that the NMC Act 2001 was not in consonance with the views, stand, and opinion of the people, he added. ‘We finally decided that it is doing no good,’ and since the NLA is not empowered to segregate central laws, the only option was to exercise ‘our powers, which were vested in us through Article 371 (A), and repeal it in toto,’ Kenye added.

New Act as early as possible
Meanwhile, the minister informed that the legislature will constitute a committee that will have wide-ranging consultations with all concerned and will bring about a new Act “befitting to our way of life and social practices.”

The State legislature will adopt the new Act as early as possible, he asserted. When asked about the timeframe, Kenye replied, “There’s no timeframe, but the government is aware of the urgency in re-enacting a new law to substitute the old one, so we will lose no time.” The legislature will also decide on the composition of the panel as the issue now becomes the business of the assembly and not the government, he added.

‘No contempt of court’
Meanwhile, Kenye asserted that in the recent Supreme Court order, “contempt of court” was not mentioned anywhere and dismissed news report headlines implying such as “unfounded and baseless.” 

“There’s a gross misconception on the part of all concerned that there was contempt of court. This is badly miscarried,” he stated.

According to him, the latest apex court order only referred the matter to the Additional Solicitor General (ASG) of India, who represented the Union of India on behalf of the Government of India. 

“They have asked him to make a special reference to Article 371 (A) as to what it deals with and what are the provisions therein which have, from where the state assembly has derived its powers to repeal a central Act,” he explained.

The court has not been apprised of the provisions of those articles and sub-clauses concerning Naga customary laws, social and religious practices, he maintained.

To this end, Kenye expressed optimism that the State Advocate General and his team and legal team are preparing all necessary documentation to make a presentation to the Court on May 1. “This should clear the air and throw some light on the background, and we expect the Court to give a just judgment,” he added. 

‘Women have found a place today’
On the 33% women’s reservation issue, Kenye alleged that the issue came to the fore when some certain sections of the society dragged the government to the court. 

“There was a tussle in between our people where the social practices of our Naga society be it any tribe does not accept the imposition of a fixed percentage being imposed on the representatives of womenfolk because it is not akin to our culture and our social practices’ he maintained.”

While Nagas have extreme custom and traditional practice where women were barred to partake in many areas of the social lives, he viewed that over the years lot of concessions have been made and restrictions were removed to keep pace with time.

‘We have seen women taking part in the former male dominated areas in our society including leadership. Even today, without any reservation there are two women representatives in the state assembly’ he pointed out, adding that ‘women have found a place in our society today.’

History of NMC Act 
In his briefing on the history of the NMC Act, Kenye pointed out that as a resource-crunch State, the government had to look for funding to develop towns, cities, and the state. As the Central government gives funds to ULBs only after enactment of a law, the Act was put in place.

“Perhaps, in desperation, the government of yesteryears had to enact this 2001 NMC Act,” he claimed. However, he maintained that the present government is not alleging “any ill motive,” “pointing fingers, or finding faults.”

“I am certain that it was with good intentions to develop our State and benefit the citizens that they quickly adopted this resolution and brought about this Act, little knowing the consequences of endorsing Article 243 and the series A-Z and with it the 74th Amendment of the Constitution of India,” Kenye averred.

He, however, noted that if there were certain oversights on the part of the executive, the bureaucracy should have pointed them out or properly advised the government of the day. 

Further elaborating, he informed that the state could not participate in the pre-amendment discussion during 1992-93 when all the secretaries of the different states’ urban development departments were asked to put in their opinions and forward their suggestions regarding the 74th Amendment.

Several secretary-level meetings were held, and lots of correspondence took place between the state and centre, he added, but opined that the lapses could be due to the absence of a full-fledged Urban Development Secretary in Nagaland at that point in time.

When asked about the allegation that the NMC Act 2001 was a copy-pasted version of a state in the court, Kenye neither denied nor confirmed the same.