Raile Rocky Ziipao
South Asia Fellow, Harvard University
Is Nagaland facing a shortage of senior IPS officers or a shortage of honest legislators/ministers?
The political gimmick that unfolds in Nagaland never fails to amuse me. The latest is the case of three most powerful men in the state i.e. the Chief Minister (CM), the Home Minister (HM), and the Chief Secretary (CS) writing to the Union Home Minister, requesting replacement of the incumbent DGP Rupin Sharma, IPS with a senior and experienced person.
What is striking about all the three letters to the Home Minister is the similarity index and blatant plagiarism. All the letters stated, ‘the challenges and grievances being faced by the Government of Nagaland particularly the Police administration in this regard due to shortage of IPS officers of sufficient seniority in the IPS cadre of Nagaland’. The similarity continues in ‘the current charge of DGP was given to Shri. Rupin Sharma, IPS (NL:1992) as a stop gap arrangement. He does not possess the required experience necessary for being posted as DGP.’ However, in the Deputy Chief Minister’s letter, he stated that Shri. Rupin Sharma, IPS as NL: 1987. Thus, technically he is of the same batch with the former DGP Shri. L. Dounel, IPS (WB: 1987) and is way above the state norms of appointing DGP who has 28 years of experience or is the Deputy Chief Minister factually incorrect?
Examining the chronology of the three letters, the CM’s letter is dated 24th March 2018, followed by CS dated 27th March 2018 and whereas the HM letter is dated 28th March 2018. Logically, the Home Minister has either plagiarized the CM or the CS letter or it was a sheer coincidence. If it is the former then the HM is the one who is inexperienced and factually incorrect. His inability to even copy-paste correctly and verify the source is questionable. How can we citizens expect such an inexperienced HM to provide our security and development when he and his office fail to even draft an original letter or even plagiarise properly. Is this the kind of change and development that the Naga voters were promised that Change is Coming?
The sole reason justified by the unholy trinity of the People’s Democratic Alliance (PDA) to replace the incumbent DGP was his inadequate experience and lack of local knowledge. (Lack of experience in corruption? Lack of local knowledge that corruption rules Nagaland?) The opposition party i.e. the Naga People’s Front (NPF) on the other hand, claimed that the PDA is attempting to replace the incumbent DGP due to his ‘refusal to make a back door appointment in the Police department.’ The modus operandi of the government appointments in a state like Nagaland and Manipur is an open secret. The connivance and clandestine nature of the nexus between Ministers-local elites-bureaucrats-contractors is deeply embedded in the structure, while operationalizing governance and development programmes. Hence, the outcome of developmental projects are well reflected in the form of dilapidated rural roads/highways, collapsing of bridges, schools without proper infrastructure , among others. This vicious cycle perpetuated by the state gets legitimatized in the realm of operation. Whoever disturbs this nexus are either terminated, excluded or sidelined from this process. So, the big question is, is Rupin Sharma a victim of this nexus? I am not here to give a character certificate nor do I know Mr. Rupin and his style of discharging duties. However, the outcry from Naga youths and a signature campaign in social media to retain Mr. Rupin speaks volume about the people’s trust in him.
The trio’s collective highfalutin letter to the Union Home Minister seeking to replace the incumbent DGP elicits the nexus of connivance in governance system. This unholy nexus is entrenched within the system and become immutable over time. The current cabinet ministers in the state are all like a stale wine in a recycled bottle. Hence, they know best the techniques to further exploit the system for their vested interests rather than working for the public. The excessive dependence upon the union government by the state limits the power of the federal system and further truncates the autonomy. The issue of the DGP is a pointer to this direction.
Had the trio coalesced and lobbied for basic physical infrastructure development such as health facilities, education, all-weather road, motorable highway, electricity, among others then they would get absolute support from the civil society. Sadly, the social reality stemming from the state perfectly fits the narratives of outsiders and Naga issue continue to be someone else’s mere data/empirical evidence while enmeshing into the blame game. Today, Nagaland is experiencing a form of scapegoat syndrome and the shortage of honest legislators, ministers, bureaucrats, and even insurgent.
