Recent directives from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas have sparked concerns among the Nagas, who perceive them as a threat to the exceptional status enjoyed by their state. Article 371A of the Indian Constitution grants special provisions to the state of Nagaland, safeguarding its cultural and customary practices, land ownership, and resource management. However, the directives issued by the central ministry appear to infringe upon these protections, raising fears of centralization and loss of autonomy among the Nagas. The Nagaland state’s unique history and cultural identity, intertwined with its political landscape, have long been protected by Article 371A, ensuring a degree of self-governance and preservation of traditional institutions. Any attempts to undermine this special status are met with resistance, as the Nagas perceive it as a threat to their identity and way of life. Thus, it is imperative to carefully examine these directives in light of Article 371A to ensure that the constitutional guarantees of autonomy and protection are upheld, respecting the Nagas’ aspirations and the principles of federalism in India.
Tag: Current Affairs, Governance, Social Justice.
Decoding the Question:
- In the Introduction, try to briefly write about the Article 371A and special status of Nagaland.
- In Body, write the recent directives of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural gas and how it is a threat to exceptional status enjoyed by the State.
- Also, mention suggestions to address issues.
- In Conclusion, suggest a way forward in lieu of a relevant Committee report.
Answer:
The 1960 Agreement was the basis for the creation of Nagaland in December 1963. Article 371A facilitated negotiated sovereignty of the Nagas on matters pertaining to their religious and social practices, customary laws and procedure, administration of civil and criminal justice, ownership and transfer of land and resources. Legal luminaries have concurred that “land and its resources” as used in Article 371 A(1)(a)(iv) includes mines and minerals.
Recent Directives of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural gas and How it is Threat to Status of the State:
- The Ministry had passed the Miners and Minerals Regulation and Development Act (MMRDA) for major minerals including oil and gas which gives vast powers to the Center in their allocation.
- Nagas agitated over what they perceived as the Centre’s threat to override the exceptional status they enjoy under Article 371A of the Constitution.
- Under Art 371A, ‘land and natural resources’ also include natural gas. So, the state canceled all gas exploration licenses awarded by the Centre in Nagaland and passed its own law and conducted its own auctions.
- As per the Centre and the Ministry, Art 371A only gives a ‘negative power’ to the Naga Assembly to negate applicability of central laws to the state in these areas and not a ‘positive power’ to create its own laws.
The creation of Nagaland was considered as outlandish and spawned the creation of perpetually dependent homeland States in the northeast in the 1970s and 1980s, large-scale discovery of petroleum and natural gas would fundamentally redefine the politics of redistribution between the Union and Nagaland, on the one hand, and individuals and tribal groups in the State, on the other.
As per the sensitivity of the Naga issue and political prudence demands that future engagement need not always be driven by legal correctness, the government can consider the Sarkaria Commission Report to accommodate and entrench Naga exceptionalism not as an anomaly but as a model of accommodating deep differences would hold the future key. This would inevitably take Article 371A to new Constitutional waters.
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