To the Chief Minister of Nagaland,
Sir, With all due respect, I would like to point out that I have never subscribed to the adage, “A Leopard cannot change its Spots”; I am of the opinion that everyone and everything is subject to change. And the opportunity to decide whether the change is for good or bad rarely lies beyond the control of an individual; but whether it is by The Hand of God or the Spin of The Wheel of Fortune, a chosen few are given the chance to decide, on behalf of Society, the direction this change will take.
During the tumultuous years that TR Zeliang occupied the Chief Minister’s Chair, I had occasion to publicly denounce him and members of his Cabinet on a number of issues; but on social media and in private, when his and your supporters were blaming each other for the mess Nagaland was in, I always contended that while the two of you were guilty of carrying on the practices of corruption, nepotism and favouritism, these customs were introduced and established by your predecessors. And that blame for the mess Nagaland is in does not fall entirely on you, him or even the two of you, but is shared by your predecessors too.
I bring this up because of the antics of one of the Ministers of your Cabinet. The period you have controlled Government is still too short to judge you on your performance; but your Deputy, and current Home Minister, Y Patton seems hell-bent on belying your promise of “Change”. He had earlier allegedly requisitioned a Lecturer (?) to be attached to his Office as an Officer-On-Duty, an act of favouritism that we seem to take for granted; but now he has purportedly gone to the extent of trying to replace the highest Law Enforcement Official of the State, namely our Director General of Police.
Patton has broken protocol by bypassing your Office and The Cabinet, and appealed directly to the Union Home Minister for a replacement to our current incumbent, Rupin Sharma, IPS. The spurious reasons given for seeking this change is that Sharma has not completed 30 years of service and that he has served as a Superintendent of Police of only one district in Nagaland, neither of which are valid reasons for disqualification from holding the Office of The Director general of Police. Patton has revealed his mala fide intentions by seeking Sharma’s replacement by name – a person who, according to sources, is not only junior to Sharma, but has not served ‘Even Once,’ in the State of Nagaland.
Sharma first caught public attention when, as the A.D.G.P, in charge of Prisons, he introduced Skills Development Programmes in the Jails of Nagaland. Bank Accounts for inmates were opened and they were taught to make detergents (among other things) and proceeds from the sales of their manufactured goods were deposited in their accounts. This achievement alone should have marked him as an officer and gentleman that Nagaland could ill-afford to lose. But he has gone further by interacting with the people of Nagaland on social media; floating ideas to improve the efficiency of the Nagaland Police, seeking suggestions to improve public-police relations and has managed to enhance the image of the Nagaland Police in the eyes of the young people of Nagaland. Many Nagas have a subconscious alienation towards mainlanders but Sharma has managed to overcome this and, in the process, established himself into a positive role model for thousands of Naga Youth.
Patton’s attempt to bring in a new Chief of Police, of his choice, can be viewed as nothing less than a signal that the usual business of corruption, favouritism and nepotism will be the order of the day, and it will begin from the top. You, Sir, have once again been given the reins of power in Nagaland. It is for you to decide whether Nagaland will continue on its rutted path of corruption, or break new ground in search for a better future for Nagaland and its People. Nagaland is mired in enough controversies, there is enough trouble looming ahead of us without actively seeking fresh controversies; I understand the need for political expediency while dealing with members of your Cabinet, but the good of Nagaland cannot become hostage to mere political expediency. I, therefore, urge you to kindly rein in the deputy CM on this issue. I thank you in the anticipation that you will realise that the common good of Nagaland must take precedence over any other concerns.
Yours faithfully, Kahuto Chishi Sumi Akukau, Hevishe Village, Khaghaboto Range
To the Deputy Chief Minister of Nagaland,
I would like to question one interesting turn of event which has been brought upon by your action.
The question here is on what grounds have you termed the current DGP Rupin Sharma as “Inexperienced” preferring someone who is “Well Aware of local issues” in your letter to MHA? I hope you have checked the replacement you are asking for has more experience than the current DGP? No? Yes?
Regardless of experience I can guarantee you that he (Rupin Sharma) is more aware of local issues than anyone of the elected representatives . He has contributed a lot to the Police Department. He has shown how one is supposed to utilize authority; within just months of his much-deserving post, he has done so much already.
There is a leadership quality which our current leaders both over ground and underground lack and that is the quality to interact with the People, listen to the people and work for the people. That’s how you garner people’s trust and their loyalty and that is how leaders should be. Instead of crying over a full blown spilt milk let me just say that people like Rupin Sharma are indeed inexperienced, at the end you are right, he is very inexperienced, maybe in taking part in Corruption activities and honestly, we are absolutely, positively fine and are happy to have such an inexperienced DGP like him. Nagaland needs more inexperienced officers and bureaucrats like him.
Apart from your love letter to MHA do note that this is not the 60’s and 90’s and the new Generation Nagas are not stupid or idiots; we have faced enough of corruption, we have seen enough unworthy hot-shots and do not for once feel that we have no clue of what you are trying to do here by asking to remove the current DGP.
One does not need proofs to show they are leaders, they lead by their actions and the people acknowledge it. It’s astounding that Rupin Sharma has garnered the trust of the Naga people (with the obvious fact we have the Indo-Naga political issue) but he is a leader nonetheless. Hence, do consider your decision and opinion for asking a replacement; else a petition war might ignite.
The people after so long have someone who is most definitely the right man on the right chair. Let him do his job.
A Concerned Naga, Atsung Imchen, Kolkata
