Assam using evictions as cover to occupy Naga land: NSCN (Niki)

The NSCN/GPRN (Niki) said the recent evictions carried out by the government of Assam was neither a surprise nor unexpected or out of the blue but a carefully orchestrated effort to seize Naga ancestral lands classed with the misleading label “Disturbed Area Belt,” which were British colonial boundaries imposed solely for administrative convenience but without consultation with the Naga people.
In a statement, NSCN/GPRN (Niki) alleged that successive Assam governments have long pursued the settlement of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants (IBIs) in disputed border areas to facilitate covert territorial occupation.
The group accused Assam of violating border terms with Nagaland by permanently deploying police in the ‘Disturb Area Belt,’ under the guise of eviction operations. It claimed the status quo has been breached and warned that Assam’s approach reflected a pattern of disputes with multiple neighbouring states which further raised concerns over broader regional implications.
NSCN/GPRN (Niki) also urged the Naga public to question the Nagaland government’s border response strategy, criticizing politicians for only visiting conflict zones during flare-ups and abandoning them afterward. The faction alleged such visits serve more as photo opportunities than genuine defense efforts.
It also highlighted the trend of police and home guards seeking urban postings for personal gain, calling this a threat to border security. NSCN (Niki) said instead of complaining about excess appointments in various departments, why not recruit more personnel to police, home guards, village guards then deploy them to the border to safeguard ancestral Naga territories?.
NSCN/GPRN (Niki) accused the Nagaland government of prioritizing specialized forces (SOT, STY) to suppress its own citizens over defending ancestral Naga territories. It questioned whether the state was functioning as a “digital entity” disconnected from the land.
The faction urged a paradigm shift in border policy and blamed successive governments for the failure to secure Naga areas. The security vacuum, it argued, stems from policy paralysis and outdated political posturing that has jeopardized territorial integrity over decades.
NSCN/GPRN (Niki) called on partisan Nagas to urge their preferred political groups to prioritize defending ancestral lands over soliciting taxes and contributions. It warned that land and people must not be separated and challenged Nagas to reflect on the kind of nation they envision. The group stressed that territorial protection is a shared political responsibility, not a selective pursuit.