Senchumo (NSN) Lotha
Chairman, ILRC, NSF
The Inner Line Pass, which is commonly abbreviated in the domain of general public as ILP, is borned from the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation of 1873. Legally speaking, the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation (BEFR) 1873 has its root in the Government of India Act 1870 dated the 25th March. The Queen Victoria Act 1870 was an Act to make better provision for making Laws and Regulations ‘for certain parts of India and for certain other purpose relating thereto.’ This Act provided an opportunity to make regulation (s) to existing laws in the event of such laws being unable or untenable to regulate situation that might arise from time to time. Section One of the Act of 1870 specifically, empowers every Governor of a Presidency-in-Council, Lieutenant-Governor or Chief Commissioner to propose to the Governor-General-in-Council, drafts of any regulations, together with the reasons for the proposal, having sole objective for the peace and governance of any part or parts of the territories that comes under the administrative jurisdiction of the concern authority proposing the regulation. The Act further obligates the Governor-General-in-Council to take such proposals or drafts into consideration and upon approval of the Governor-General-in-Council, the regulation shall have full force of law and such regulation shall supersede other regulations in any wise made before.
The term ‘Inner’ was coined by a Former Vice-Chancellor (1875-1877) of University of Calcutta. In order to facilitate the draft for the proposed regulation, i.e., the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation 1873, Sir, Arthur Hobhouse simply gave the suggestion which was a kind of arbitrary in a sense. It was, but found useful, at that point of time, because the draft proposal which was doing the round at the administrative hierarchy, was only using the word ‘Line’ without having found the right adjective for it. The word was later accepted and introduced into the amended Regulation and to this day it has become the usage of one and all.
The Inner Line Pass system was brought about due to the prevailing circumstance at that point of time when the British was striving to explore and thereby colonise the Naga Hills. The British found the Nagas both friendly and hostile. On the one friendly front, the British found that the Nagas were fragile in their state of being and therefore vulnerable to the advanced plainsmen. Moreover, the British admired the unique customs and traditions of the Nagas. They were touched by the friendly attitude as well as the hospitality of the Nagas. In such a state, the British felt the need to protect their identity from the advanced plainsmen. On the other hostile front, the British could not tolerate the Nagas’ retaliation to their exploratory and colonisation advancement. Moreover, the Nagas also often indulge in raiding the British subjects in the plains. They used to plunder the villages under British protection causing irreparable damages to human lives and properties. The colonial administration under the British had the obligation to protect their plainsmen subjects from the frequent raids of the Nagas. In this juxtaposition, the British colonial government decided to regulate the entry of outsiders into the Naga hills by introducing the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation (BEFR) in 1873. The BEFR 1873 is a concoction of interests in its origin and the rest of its enforcement is history.
The BEFR 1873 was officially published in the Gazette of India on the 5th of August 1873. The Regulation, incorporated with eleven sections, empowered the local Government of Bengal, to prescribe a line to be called “the inner line” in each of the above-named districts and prohibits all British subject (s), from going beyond such line without a pass, to be issued by the Chief Executive Officer, or any such authorized other officer, to grant a pass, subject to cancellation from time to time. The severity of the Regulation is incorporated in Section 3 which strictly prohibited any British subjects(s) or other person(s) from crossing “The Inner Line” after having been drawn and declared officially. Any trespasser (s) was made liable to be convicted before a Magistrate of the Ist or 2nd Class and to a fine with an upper ceiling limit of Rs. 100 for the first offence and Rs. 500 for the second, or to simple or rigorous imprisonment of a term not exceeding three months, or even both and for each subsequent offence. The value of the amount of fine, in today’s context, that could be imposed on defaulters at that point of time reflects the severity of this Inner Line Regulation. It was further regulated that any rubber, wax, ivory, or other jungle products included in the prohibition that is possessed by a convicted persons(s) under this regulation may also be confiscated by an order to be passed along with the conviction by the Magistrate. Section seven of the regulation also prohibited outsiders, other than the native of the Naga hills from acquiring any interest in the land or its products without the prior permission of the Government.
At the outset, the ILP has been, over the years, wrongly expanded as Inner Line Permit. Sometimes, Pass and Permit might be used interchangeably. However, in official parlance, wrong usage could be misleading leaving precedence for unscrupulous people to take advantage. The word ‘Pass’ basically means to move; to go; to proceed; goods to be moved or transferred from one point to another; to make a transit; to put up with. On the other hand, the word ‘Permit’ to grant (one) express license or liberty to do an act; to authorize; to give leave; to grant permission; to allow; or a permit to land goods subject to duty. The British colonial administration never used the word ‘Permit’. This is simply because the right of the holder of an Inner Line Pass is to cross the Inner Iine only for temporary period and hence, has no authority to engage in any kind of business other than the purpose for which the Pass was granted. Moreover, the number of days given in the ‘Pass’ is very numerical and no Pass holder can exceed the numeric figure unless prior notice is served to the appropriate authority and subsequent extension is given. Unfortunately, as of today, the issuing authorities of ILP, ignorantly or otherwise, have begun to misused the abbreviation of ILP as Inner Line Permit. On the strength of this Permit, undue advantages has been taken and is being taken by unscrupulous outsiders. This must be urgently rectified so that the very purpose of the introduction of the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation is meaningfully achieved.
The system of obtaining prior permission to enter into erstwhile Naga hills and present Nagaland in the form of Inner Line Pass (ILP) has been in existence for more than one hundred and fifty years. The ILP was stringently enforced during the British era and also before the statehood of Nagaland. Layers of scrutiny were conducted on those non-Nagas especially, wanting to enter the Naga Hills for business and economic pursuits. Many British subjects including Europeans were denied entry into the Naga Hills without specific and acceptable reasons. After the grant of Nagaland statehood on 1st December 1963, the responsibility for the enforcement of Inner Line Regulation fell on the Nagaland Government. The legacy of stringent enforcement in the colonial period could not be inherited by the Nagaland Government due to various circumstances. This has created a vacuum leading to unabated influx of outsiders into the state of Nagaland. Today, despite the existence of the ILP system, the exponential increase and presence of people from outside the Inner Line is obvious. The students’ organisations spearheaded by the influential Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) and other civil societies have been voicing out their concern every now and then but the situation remains far from what it should be. The indigenous people of Nagaland feel threatened by the overwhelming influx of non-Naga outsiders who have already taken the economic grounds in the state. Today, the Nagas are dancing to the tune of outsiders who have flooded the state purely with an intent to exploit the Nagas economically and politically. This has led to the drain of wealth from Nagaland by non-Nagas in a manner of theory propounded by Dadabhai Naoroji in his book ‘Poverty and Un-British Rule in India’. Thorough research in this aspect will dig out the quantum of financial loss which will be colossal. Unfortunately, despite being led into sheer economic desperation, the state of helplessness looms large on the face of the local Naga populace.
The state government, from time to time, issues notifications in an effort to regulate the entry of outsiders into Nagaland. The State Government has also constituted at least four committees tasking them to delve into the BEFR 1873 and make further recommendations for judicious implementation. All these committees have done justice by submitting elaborate suggestions to the Government. One such committee has made a comparative remarked between Nagaland and Mizoram on the system of enforcement of the Inner Line Regulation. It stated that the mode of enforcement in Mizoram is regimental and Nagaland is facilitative. This speaks volumes as to why the Mizoram state economy is in the hands of the Mizos and Nagaland, in the hands of the outsiders. One of the most prominent notifications of the state government is the notifications dated 20th September, 2024, that has brought
the erstwhile Dimapur district under the jurisdiction of the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation. Of late, this has created confusions amongst the outsiders living in Dimapur districts, which is now sliced down into three districts, namely Dimapur, Chumukedima and Niuland. The very complex effect of this notification is the demands from various non-Naga communities, seeking exemption from the purview of the BEFR 1873, are flooding the higher authorities. If the state government does not read these growing demands sagaciously, flood gates will be opened for more of such exemptions from different communities again. For exemption of ILP for outsiders, the government of Nagaland has issued a notification making a two-cut-off year, i.e., the 1st December 1963 and the 21st November 1979, when Dimapur subdivision under Kohima District was declared as a tribal area. Although, many civil societies including the Naga Students’ Federation objects to these two-cut-off year, yet, the order of the Government of Nagaland still stand as on date and accordingly, the implementing agencies are abiding by notification while enforcing the ILP system.
Today, the ILP system is in vogue in four northeastern states of India namely, Nagaland, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram. Any outsider, other than the native inhabitants of these mentioned states has to obtained a prior permission before entering the state. The ILP applicant has to specifically, state the purpose of wanting to enter these states. Similarly, while any outsider having the need to visit Nagaland state must apply for the ILP through online portal or offline mode established by the Government of Nagaland. The applicant is required to have a guarantor who must be a native of the state of Nagaland. The consent of the guarantor is mandatory and no ILP applicant can be granted the Pass unless the authenticity of the guarantor is obtained.
The natives of Nagaland, especially, the Nagas must understand that ILP system is meant to monitor and control the outsiders coming into Nagaland but not to harass any genuine Indians. Nagaland government has no authority to prevent any genuine Indians wanting to come to Nagaland as long as they abide by the existing laws of the state. All genuine Indians can move freely to any parts of India including Nagaland. ILP is only a means to take into consideration the number of Indians entering into Nagaland and also to monitor the activities of these ILP holders while in Nagaland. ILP is issued for a particular period of time and on expiry of the period, unless the Pass is extended, the ILP holders must leave the state. The same individual ILP holder must apply for fresh ILP to re-enter Nagaland, if the need so arises. It should be the considered understanding of everyone, the Issuing Authority in particular and the public in general, that the very spirit of BEFR 1873 does not have provision for renewal of ILP. Therefore, renewal of ILP is against the objectives of the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation and non-adherence to this will defeat the very purpose of the BEFR 1873.
The defaulters of ILP are punishable with fine or imprisonment. The designated magistrate is authorised to determine the quantum of punishment for ILP defaulters. After the due course of penalty, the ILP defaulters must be deported to outside of Nagaland state. During the British regime, the magistrate was authorised to imposed a fine of not less that Rupees 100 and not more than rupees 500 and imprisonment of not less than three months and not more than one year. If any ILP defaulter is caught, they must be brought and handed over to the designated magistrate of the 1st Class. No implementing personnel has the authority to exact penalty to an ILP defaulter except the designated magistrate.
In short, whatever may the intention, the Inner Line system created by the British is now look upon by the indigenous people of Nagaland as the only means to protect their identity, culture, economy and social fabrics. The ILP is now assumed as a tool to control the unabated influx of outsiders, especially the illegal immigrants. The responsibility for the successful enforcement of Inner Line Regulation rest with both the implementing agencies and the public in general. The Nagas must be vigilant to ensure that no one harbours outsiders at the cost of the Nagas. The Nagas must stand upright to ensure that the protection given by the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation benefits them in all respects. It is for this reason, NSF has, of late, constituted the Inner Line Regulation Commission (IRLC) which has been tasked to deal with all matters regarding the successful implementation of ILP in state of Nagaland.
Presented on 29th August 2025 at the 31st General Conference of the Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) Tseminyu Town, Nagaland.
