NAGA POLITICAL ISSUE PARTIALLY RESOLVED: NEIPHIU RIO

The negotiating parties have resolved the "contentious matters" related to the age-old Naga political issue, but the "symbolic matters" continue to be a "stumbling block" in arriving at a final solution, Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio said. To a question on "Naga integration", Rio said the Centre has made it clear that Nagas have the "legitimate right" to be integrated, but a democratic process has to be followed. "I am not going into details, but when one says symbolic issues it may refer to flags and passport," he said.

The Centre had signed a ceasefire agreement with the NSCN(IM) in 1997. Several rounds of peace talks were held between the two sides subsequently. A Framework Agreement between the Centre and the NSCN(IM) was signed on August 3, 2015, in presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Apart from the NSCN(M), six other Naga nationalist political groups (NNPGs) have joined the dialogue last year.