Reacting sharply to the statement made by former Nagaland Minister K Therie on the demand of the Kuki-Zo community in Manipur, the NSCN-IM said that “not even an inch of Naga territory should be touched in the name of geopolitical arrangement for the Kuki-Zo community in Manipur”.
“The statement issued by KTherie on the controversial Kuki-Zo’s demand for a separate administration in Manipur is not surprising as he is a person who always found himself the odd man out,” the NSCN-IM statement issued to Newmai News Network on Tuesday night said.
According to the NSCN-IM, KTherie’s statement also “reflects his poor knowledge of the geopolitical issue in Manipur”.
The statement then said, “Given the sensitivity of the issue involved, the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) has stayed away from getting involved in any manner other than to make the stand sharp and clear that not even an inch of Naga territory should be touched in the name of geopolitical arrangement for the Kuki-Zo community in Manipur”.
The NSCN-IM also said that the “unmerited” concern of K Therie for the Kuki-Zo community for separate administration is like a “voice crying in the wilderness” for the Kuki-Zo community.
The NSCN-IM further said that K Therie needs to look at the Kuki-Zo demand for separate administration within the larger context of the Nagas’ geopolitical issue and not from the Kuki-Zo geopolitical perspective.
The NSCN-IM then said that K Therie is, moreover, a person who has lost the representative status of his people consecutively, making his voice irrelevant anywhere on any issue.
The NSCN-IM then advised that it is better for K Therie to “stay low and cool his heels” and stay away from the Meitei-Kuki-Zo ethnic issue. “He should therefore, avoid giving any comment/statement that is bigger than what he can chew,” it cautioned.
