Through a succession of trials and tribulations and pressures from within and without, oursdemocmcy has survived all these momentous years. Its inherent strength is derived from such institutions as Legislative Assembly, a powerful judiciary, a vigilant media students’, vocal intelligentsia and an organized working class. All these factors notwithstanding, our Nagas democracy is still plagued by severa1 flaws. Just to mention a few, the system is riddled with lack of accountability, entry of criminals into politics, the dominant influence of muscle power and money power, pervasive corruption, oppression of women., tribalism and other marginalized groups and mobocracy masquerading as democracy.
Every one of us can be proud of its democracy, with all its flaws, surviving for more than sixty years. Gandhiji has said” My notion of democracy is that under it the weakest should have the same opportunity as the strongest”. The question we need to ask ourselves again and again is whether we are creating two society; one society where few manage to grab all opportunities and another society where a majority are reconciled to the pathetic condition of lost opportunities. For them, there is no democracy.
When we look at the mirror of the latest development regarding the shifting of New Riphyim and Doyang from Engtan Range i.e. 37 AlC, it is unjustified and unacceptable. New Riphyim and Doyang left bank are from the very beginning belong to none, but members of Englan Range. The extraction of the said vi1lages will give rise to chaos and anarchy because of its divide and rule policy. It is cleared that it divided the family of Englan Range into two constituencies i.e. 37 A/C and 39 AlC, which are opposed by all the enlightened citizens. In nitty-gritty, every democratic countries people can claim or demand their rights’ which is supposed to be theirs, for the wrongful done by the exploiters. True democracy are nothing but the voice of the people is supreme and above. .
The people of Englan Range are at all surprised at the pathetic state of the development given the fact that the government had over the decades’ failed to stem the rot until now.
I, fervently appeal to the high competent authority to retrospect and review the new draft working paper six. (6) prepared by the Delimitation Commission, so that our grass root democracy will increase as we aspire for.
We also strongly support without reservation to the Joint Action Committee of Tribal Hohos for full implementation of Delimitation Act 2002, amended by Act 2003. We, therefore ardently request the DAN Government and the concerned authority to prompt down the rock-bottom and fulfill the aged standing demand as a compensation and short cut definition of the DAN Government’s slogan of Transparency, Accountability and Eco-closeness to the people so that democracy will be a welcome from top to the bottom-from Legislative Assembly to the panchayats.
R. Chanchi Kithan
Wokha: Nagaland
