Monalisa Changkija
News of the Nagaland Legislative Assembly elections, held on February 27, 2023, is old hat now. Another NDPP-BJP coalition Government has been installed and other parties with MLAs in the Assembly have clamoured to be in the ruling dispensation. Therefore, ‘letters of support’ were submitted to the Chief Minister, who of course, happily accepted them but has so far not mentioned “opposition-less Government” in Nagaland. Things are definitely hunky-dory for Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio now and will likely be so till non-NDPP and non-BJP parties wake up to the nuances of parliamentary democracy that underscore an opposition to act as check and balance to offset the infinite possibilities of a kind of dictatorship of ‘all-party’ rule. The moot point here is whether the parties that have its elected members in the Nagaland Assembly will ever wake up to that or even if they are aware, whether they are interested in the finer points of upholding parliamentary democracy, which basically means upholding the interests of the people.
Now, there may be a discourse on the will of the people juxtaposed with upholding the interests of the people. This is where things get interesting because the majority votes have come to be accepted as the ‘will of the people’ ~ but the ‘will of the people’ doesn’t necessarily translate into upholding the interests of the people. This is so particularly in a State like Nagaland, which may have an increasing literacy rate but not an educated electorate. Not when traditional village bodies and heads of families, clans, tribes, etc., ~ all indisputably males ~ decide who should be elected. Not when women are still steeped in the patriarchal culture and traditions and have fears of stepping outside the Laxman-Rekhas of ‘Naga culture’ and village bodies’ dicta. Then there is the lure of money, fear of muscle power and the blatant booth-capturing (known as ‘couping’). So, in Nagaland, the ‘will of the people’ is a contested construct ~ twisted, turned, distorted, mangled and tainted from its original connotations ~ but apparently works for our political class right from the village level. Power is so magnetic that to have and hold it, no lengths are too great, no depths too low, no width too unembracable and no value uncompromisable, no?
It is being said that the February 27 Nagaland Legislative Assembly elections were the worst so far ~ in terms of money spent, muscles flexed and booths ‘couped’ but that too is debatable. Having covered State elections since the late 1980s, it is difficult to make comparisons because one has heard same accounts of events of election days across Nagaland repeated over and over again, including this time. The amounts of money spent may be different and this time the amounts may sound astounding but then the value of money is also not the same as it was in the 1980s or even in the 1990s ~ actually, till almost ten years or so. There is no change in muscle power because in any generation, there are always ‘well qualified’ people for this ‘job’, which only the political and the moneyed classes can employ ~ and have the need to employ. As for booth-capturing, it is just a corollary of money and muscle power.
But are money and muscle power and booth capturing that have been unabated the ‘will of the people’? How deeply are the people in connivance and complicity with the contravention of parliamentary democracy ~ nay, of ethical breach of public life and public matters? Can we say that our people allow these therefore the political class and individuals have no option but to resort to these unholy methods? These are issues that Nagaland must dwell on because our political class and individuals are equally organic to our society, as also breast-fed by the same cultures, traditions, beliefs, levels of understanding, attitudes and mindsets as the rest of Naga society. About a decade ago, there would be those that would castigate Indian elections and Indian political systems totally corrupting our people hence unsuitable for us but these voices have died down since and that is interesting by itself.
So, what roles exactly are our political, economic, social, cultural and traditional elites playing in the power paradigms within the framework of parliamentary democracy? And, what message(s) have our people received to allow greed supersede all considerations of the democratic space vital for and in our own interests? Certainly, this is indicative of our low level of education and understanding of democracy itself ~ although we take pride in being traditionally democratic. Could this also be a consequent of having lost our moral moorings due to historical factors and the resultant corollaries? So, having sold votes, markets at Dimapur and possibly Indian metropolises have seen increased sales but what next? Wait for another five years in misery? How easy it is to sell our souls and talk about peace, development, prosperity, progress and our uniqueness! It is during elections, a people bare the truth about themselves ~ not only of the government they choose. In Nagaland, it happens after every five years with such regularity that we have stopped noticing it and caring about it, which is dangerous.
These elections, as previous elections, once again underline that to us, as a people, instant gratification is all that matters. And, this is scary for a tribal community that must strive to survive and exist ~ and if possible thrive, in vastly and rapidly changing state, regional, national and global events and equations, wherein human life and human security are increasingly under threat from so many factors ~ yet unimagined by us, much beyond our comprehension and control despite technological advances and innovations. But perhaps our people understand that and live by the motto of ‘do or die’? So, what is it that propels our people to take chances on our existence and the future? Cupidity, stupidity or fatalism? Or, is it a matter of believing in promises and lies, as simpletons are wont to? Or, have we lost all trace of conscience? Elections in Nagaland, as always, prod us to do a lot of soul-searching but are, as always, also inconclusive because probably we don’t like conclusions ~ evidenced by our issues always remaining inconclusive ~ never mind, what our politicos says about solution, development, change, etc. Is there some kind of psychological explanation(s) about why a people or individuals prefer inconclusiveness?
Meanwhile, our NDPP-BJP coalition Government, much supported by all other political parties in the State, are repeating what they said in the past five years and more, which the public doesn’t seem to hear or ignore, especially about solution to the Naga Political Issue. The Government of India and Rio’s bosom pal Himanta Biswa Sarma, remain silent. This silence probably will continue till the 2024 parliamentary elections. Everyone has their priorities ~ even the people of Nagaland. By the way, don’t be surprised if for the parliamentary elections, a BJP candidate is fielded from Nagaland for our lone seat in the Lok Sabha. There has to be some logic to the NDPP-BJP seat sharing.
(The Columnist, a journalist and poet, is Editor, Nagaland Page)
(Courtesy: Assam Tribune. Published on March 29, 2023)
