Issued by RNPC* Media Cell
This is becoming a rather infantile practice on the part of JACAS to come up with redundant records from the 1900s. Spamming the media with the government notifications and orders related to the creation of Mikir Hills and Karbi Anglong as such is just irrelevant and unnecessary wastage of space, no one denies what happened in 1951 or 1976. Kindly save space and stop copy pasting these details from the KAAC website.
When Mr. Mills said, “About a hundred years ago or more…….” In page 2 of his book the “Rengma Nagas”, it is very apparent that he wasn’t sure of the exact time of the Rengma migration wave that he speaks about. He could be referring to a century or several centuries, his reference is of an uncertain timeline.
Another reference that the Mikirs makes is of a book by John Butler, “Travels and Adventures in the Province of Assam” 1885. Here Butler said, “The Rengma Nagahs are evidently descended from the Angahmee Nagahs; it is said that, in consequence of oppression and feuds in their own tribe, they emigrated to the high hills occupied by the Tokophen Nagahs…”
Like we mentioned in our earlier write up, if one is interested in our migration history, one needs to comprehend the various migration waves of our people. Like we said, no tribes germinated from the soil and that all indigenous people have migration history to some extent. And in the above passage, Mr. Butler wasn’t aware of the fact that the Tokophen Nagas he refers to is a Rengma Naga Village which still exist as Toko-Pahar or Kunyilajong. What does it signify?? It means that even before the migration wave he talks about, there were already Rengma Nagas of an earlier wave with a well-established territory as the Tokophen Nagas. The Name “TOKOPHEN” consists of two words, “Toko” in Assamese which mean “Thatch Palm” and “Phen” in Rengma which means a village. Today the Toko-pahar/Tokophen falls under the Naga Rengma Mauza.
Again, the Mikirs makes a reference to the book, “The introduction of the Lhota Nagas 1922” written by J.H Hutton where it is written, “That the Rengma Nagas migrated to mikir Hills only a hundred year ago”. After 14 years, Mr. Mills in his book, “The Rengma Nagas” which the Mikirs loves so much to quote more than the Rengmas, on page 2 under footnote 1, Mr. Mills makes it clear that Dr. Hutton was wrong in assuming that the Rengmas migrated in bulk. As stated above, our migration consists of several waves spanning across several centuries and thus one must not assume like J.H Hutton or the JACAS. Also, the reference “Mikir Hills” doesn’t imply that Rengmas Migrated to the Mikir lands but by the time the book was written in 1900s, the Mikirs had already occupied those portions of the Rengma ancestral lands and thus the recent visitors referred to those hills occupied by the Mikirs as “Mikir Hills”.
We don’t deny history and we don’t deny being a Naga with common source of origin but it is also a fact that our ancestors were first to walk and cultivate the lands, drank from its rivers and streams and the whole of the Rengma hills was their hunting ground.
The Mikirs initially dwelled in Cachar region but they were chased out by the Cachari King. On being chased out, they ran towards the Khasi Jaintia Hills and served the Jaintia King as slaves. Later due to the disobedience of Rongpharpi Rongbe, they were again chased out of the Khasi Jaintia Hills by the Khasi King. Running for their lives, Rongpharpi Rongbe led her Mikir People towards Rengma Naga Hills crossing over the Kopili River and occupied the present location claiming it as the Mikir Hills. From here, they get connected with the leftover Mikirs in Cachar area now known as the Hamren district or West Karbi Anglong (their original homeland).
John Butler in his book, “Travels and Adventures in the province of Assam” in page 126 and 127 wrote…. “According to the traditions of the tribes, they were originally settled in Tooleeram Senaputtee’s territory, under petty chiefs of their own selection. Some years ago, they were conquered by a Rajah of Cachar, from whose oppression they were driven to take refuge in Jynteea. Meeting there with the same treatment, some emigrated to Deemoroo, Beltollah, and Ranee in the district of Kamroop; the remainder took up their present abode in the locality described above…”
Edward Stack and Charles Lyall in their book. “The Mikirs” 1908 wrote in page 4 2nd Para… “The traditions of the race point to the Eastern portion of the Khasi and Jaintia Hills, bordering on the Kopili (or Kupli) river (where many still remain), as their original abode”.
Again, in page 153, third para… “When Robinson and Stewart wrote, it was still remembered that the Mikirs had once been settled in strength in the country (now called North Cachar) to the immediate north of the Barail Range, and in contact with the Angami, the Kacheha, and the Kabui Nagas”.
The first three pages of the book gives a detailed account of the habitat of Meekirs on the vicinity of North Cachar, Khasi and Jaintia Hills. In fact, the whole book talks about the Nomadic nature of the Meekirs.
The Meekirs never ruled themselves as the JACAS claims, they were Ruled by the Cachar King, the Jaintia King, the Ahom King. The Meekirs were nomadic in nature without any permanent settlement, moving from place to place. In fact, even the Mikir Hills in Cachar didn’t actually belonged to them but permission was granted to them to inhabit and cultivate by the Ahom and the Cachar kings.
In the same book, “The Mikirs” so is written on page 5 1st para last sentence…. “They are a mild and unwarlike people, and are said to have given up the use of arms when they placed themselves under the protection of the Ahom kings”. Unlike the Mikirs, Rengma Nagas were warrior tribe who lost some and won some but always kept their sovereignty intact. We never paid any tributes to anyone neither seek any permission, in fact our people even refused to pay tax to the British until 1848 though the whole of Assam was annexed by the British after the Yandaboo Treaty of 1826.
The Mikirs who migrated to the Rengma Hills in the later part of1700 from the Cachar and Khasi Jaintia Hills occupied a small stretch of plains bordering the Rengma Hills and Nowgong/Sibsagar. By the time the Britishers arrived in the 1800s and 1900s, Mikirs had already migrated and settled in those area and thus the recent visitors started referring to those hills as the Mikir Hills. However, Mikir Hills origin is in Cachar and Jaintia Hills (Hamren) and throughout the book “The Mikirs” this fact is reflected.
In the book, “A Descriptive Account of Assam” by William Robinson, in page 308 last para “….. possessing no written language, it is no easy matter to trace their origin. They have a tradition that their ancestors originally came from Jaintia Hill….”
Finally, in regard to the source of our origin as per folklore, J.P Mills wrote that, “They, with the Angamis, Semas and Lhotas, belong to the group of tribes that place their point of dispersal at Khezha-Kenoma”. The Mikirs tries to be sarcastic by mentioning the above passage by and by…. However, we are proud of our oral history brought down by our ancestors in the form of folklores. We are proud to be Naga and it’s a blessing that we share our history of origin with our fellow Naga brothers.
If they are so interested in folktales, they should read the following passage from the book, “History of the Relation of the Government with the Hill tribes of the North-east Frontier of Bengal” written by Alexander Mackenzie in 1884, on page 215 under the Journal of Mr. Masters it is written, “Formerly there were no Nagas in this world.It is here necessary to premise that the “world” of the Rengma naga includes all the tracts of the country which can be seen from the highest peak of the Rengma hills, but no more. It includes Upper and central Assam, and is bounded on all sides of lofty mountains inhabitated by Abors, great enemies of the Rengma Nagas”.
“… They lived comfortably together, and in course of time had four sons- Ram, Krishna, Ahom and Naga…”
“…. Naga immediately set to work and very soon cleared the house of mice, with which his father was so pleased that he gave Naga the first portion of the inheritance and allotted him all the high peaks on the Rengma Hills.”
There is no point of denying one’s history, it can never be manipulated or changed. Embrace the truth and work towards a mutually respectable and progressive future by acknowledging each other’s rights.
*Rengma Naga Peoples' Council
