With an aim to end the decade-long negotiation with NSCN (IM), New Delhi on Thursday is holding ‘final’ round of closed door meeting with the Naga leaders at Delhi’s Claridges hotel.
Nagaland chief minister Neiphu Rio is also learnt to have attended the meeting.
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Satyendra Garg, joint secretary (Northeast), ministry of home affairs, governor RN Ravi, who is also interlocutor for the peace talks, are representing the government side.
NSCN (IM) leaders Thuingaleng Muivah, Anthony Shimray, chief of NSCN (IM) army, former military chief Phungthing Shimrang among others have represented the Naga delegation.
Sources said, almost all the signatories of the “framework agreement” signed in 2015 between Centre and Naga leadership have attended the meeting.
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Started around 11 am on Thursday morning, the meeting is going on till the filling of this report.
No media was allowed inside the meeting venue. “The meeting may continue till late evening,” sources said.
The last meeting between earlier this month ended in a deadlock over NSCN (IM)’s demand for separate flag and constitution.
The Centre has already refused to accept their demand.
The government in a statement even accused the NSCN (IM) and said that some leaders of the insurgent group through various media platforms are misleading the people with absurd assumptions and presumptions over what they have already agreed with the Government.
However, Thursday’s meeting assumes importance given the fact that it could end the recent deadlock between the Centre and NSCN (IM).
If sources in the government are to be believed, except a few top leaders, almost all other have verbally agreed to adhere to the Centre’s “deal offer.”
“The peace deal right now is in a make or break situation over the hardening of positions around these two issues as demanded by Naga leadership,” sources said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also keeping a close watch over the ongoing peace process.
In the second week of this month, Ravi had briefed Prime Minister Modi about the status of the peace talks.
“There were directions from the PMO to close the deal at the earliest,” sources said.