Nagaland and in particular the commercial hub of Dimapur is plagued by the chronic problem of ‘illegal taxation’ or extortion which has become an ‘industry’ to make a flourishing business. All types of people are getting involved in this lucrative sector where the only investment needed is intimidation with force and the return you get is easy and big cash. Extortion is therefore a big business especially Dimapur. And by the way, extortion has also become one bad habit of the Nagas and knowingly or unknowingly, we as common people have also contributed to this practice giving it legitimacy and acceptance in our society. Unidentified extortionists willfully extract money from small traders, businessman and even public commuters. This widespread extortion has also given rise to fake cadres who collect money in the name of the recognized national groups. The demand of generating revenue for the Naga groups is not being disputed but its misuse should be detected by the concerned authority within the Naga national groups so that the public do not suffer.
While the menace of extortion is well known, the other problem is the failure of the State authorities to deal with this in a consistent, sincere and effective manner. Remember such illegal activities are taking place even after the concerned authorities have passed orders after orders for many years. In fact, the Deputy Commissioner of Dimapur had on several occasions over the years taken some bold steps ordering a number of unions and associations to immediately close down their collections counters. However all such measures initiated till now has been without much success. This goes to show that people in general do not fear the government. They give a damn to the countless of orders and notification brought out on the subject. Why is this so?
It is clear that we do not have a strong government. For many years now, the credibility of the State machinery has come into question because of its inability to deliver when it matters most—enforcing security, peace and order. It is not that the State government is incapable of coming out with strong measures. As mentioned earlier the failure is on enforcing these measures in a consistent manner. For instance, around a year ago the State government announced a crackdown on all forms of illegal collection. The instruction to various DCs and SPs to ban and dismantle all illegal organization and illegal check gates across Nagaland was as a matter of fact clear and unambiguous. Unfortunately as time proved this strong message was not backed up by an equally tough enforcement measure. Things are back to square one or even worse as per the latest report.
Every known person or authorities have from time to time spoken out against such rampant extortion/taxation. Whether it is the Naga Hoho, NSF, NBCC, Chief Minister, State Bureaucracy or various NGOs, all have voiced concern over this particular malaise and therefore a solution is the need of the hour. Ideas and suggestions are there but who will do the actual work of enforcing it? The district administration along with the police establishment must demonstrate its resolve to take real and effective measures to stop illegal taxes on the ground. Besides enforcement measures, as mentioned earlier, Naga civil society along with the State government will have to take some form of initiative involving the national groups. The problem of illegal taxation or extortion has been talked about for far too long by too many concerned people but a commensurate response to find a remedy has not been forthcoming till date. Public lethargy will also have to change if we want to see some improvement on the ground.
