PM promises to consult NE states on Naga accord details

New Delhi, Aug 8: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today promised to consult North Eastern states in finalisation of the details of the peace accord signed with NSCN(IM) last week, Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh said here today amid a controversy over the issue.

The Manipur Chief Minister as also his Nagaland counterpart T R Zeliang separately met the Prime Minister here during which the issue related to the Naga peace accord was discussed.

"Manipur Chief Minister was informed that everything would be discussed with the state governments concerned before finalisation of the accord," a state government statement.

A similar assurance was given to Zeliang who was accompanied by his Home Minister Y Patton during the meeting with Modi, sources in the state government said. Zeliang later said the accord signed with NSCN(IM) on August three is just a framework for final settlement.

Pinning "great hopes" in Modi, he said consultations on the accord had been going on for the last two months during which civil society and local gropus were consulted. Zeliang heads Nagaland Peoples Front (NFP), an ally of NDA, while Manipur is ruled by Congress.

The Prime Minister's assurance comes against the backdrop of attack by Congress President Sonia Gandhi on him, saying that North East Chief Ministers were not consulted on the Naga peace accord.

The Manipur Chief Minister, along with his counterparts in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, had protested for not having consulted the neighbouring states of Nagaland before signing the initial accord with NSCN-IM on Monday.

The NSCN-IM, which had given up its original demand of sovereignty a few years ago, has been asking for integration of Naga-inhabited areas in Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam. All three states are opposed to the outfit's demand.

PTI