Liezietsu chosen as new Nagaland CM

Bijay Sankar Bora

Tribune News Service

Guwahati, February 20

The president of Naga People’s Front (NPF), Shurhozelie Liezietsu (81) has been chosen as the new chief minister of Nagaland in place of T R Zeliang who resigned on Sunday under intense pressure from agitating tribal organisations.

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The tribal organisations have been demanding ouster of Zeliang for his government’s decision to hold Urban Local Bodies (ULB) polls with 33% reservation for women.

The tribal bodies opposed the polls because of reservation of seats to women, which they deemed in violation of Naga customary traditions.

The meeting of  the ruling Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN) held in Kohima today chose  Naga People’s Front (NPF) Shurhozelie Liezietsu as the next chief minister of Nagaland.

Shurhozelie, who is not an MLA and belongs to Angami tribe, will now have to seek an election within six months. 

He was an MLA for eight consecutive terms, but did not contest election in 2013. The new chief minister is being sworn in on February 22 next, according to an official source in Kohima.

The NPF is the major constituent of DAN with 48 legislators in the 60-member Nagaland assembly that has no opposition. All other MLAs in the House, including eight independents and four of BJP, are in the ruling alliance.

Former chief minister and the lone Lok Sabha member from Nagaland, Neiphiu Rio, was perceived to be the frontrunner for the CM’s post.

Rio’s camp allegedly tried to woo over 40 MLAs of the ruling coalition by bringing all of them to a resort in Kaziranga in Assam on Friday night. Rio, too, reached the resort on Saturday after coming from New Delhi.

Meanwhile, a spokesman of the Joint Coordination Committee, one of the tribal organisations demanding ouster of Zeliang as the CM, said the indefinite Nagaland government bandh which was called since February 6 last, had been called off with immediate effect as Zeliang stepped down.

However, the agitating groups will persist with their demand for amendment to the Nagaland Municipal Act so that the provisions do not infringe upon Naga customary laws as far as women reservation is concerned.

They also continue to demand suspension of Dimapur police commissioner over the death of two persons in police action against protestors on January 28.