Federation says govt assured action against 30 appointments; 47 cases to be examined
Correspondent
KOHIMA, OCT 12 (NPN): Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) has reiterated its demand for the termination of all alleged illegal and irregular appointments in Nagaland, insisting that employees appointed outside the prescribed recruitment processes of the Nagaland Public Service Commission (NPSC) and Nagaland Staff Selection Board (NSSB) be removed and the resulting vacancies referred for open recruitment.
Addressing a press conference on Monday, NSF vice president Vimeyiekho Vitso said the Federation had been apprised of the State Government’s action concerning 109 alleged illegal appointments across 16 departments during a meeting with the Cabinet Subcommittee on October 12. The meeting was chaired by deputy chief minister, Y. Patton and attended by minister G. Kaito Aye, advisor Dr. Kekhrie Yhome, principal secretary (P&AR) and officials from the departments concerned.
Vitso said the 109 cases comprised 13 NPSC posts, with appointments made between 2018 and 2021, and 96 NSSB posts, with appointments made between 2019 and 2023. The NSF maintained that the appointments violated government Office Memorandums dated June 6, 2016, and April 22, 2020, and undermined the prescribed recruitment procedures. NSF had submitted an ultimatum to the State Government on March 20, 2026, demanding termination of the alleged illegal appointments. The 45-day ultimatum expired on May 4. Following an assurance from the Chief Secretary that the Government was serious about addressing the issue, the NSF kept its agitation on hold for around five months while awaiting a meeting with the Cabinet Subcommittee.
Vitso said the government informed the NSF that, among the cases under scrutiny, two employees in the non-NPSC Group C category had been terminated and two others had resigned. The cases involved an Expert Weaver and a Distillation Assistant under Industries and Commerce, an LDA in the Directorate of Economics and Statistics, and an LDA in Nagaland State Transport.
Under the NPSC category, three employees had been terminated and one had resigned. These cases involved three Junior Engineers under the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) and an Assistant Station Superintendent under Nagaland State Transport.
The government had also informed the Federation that some employees included in the list had been regularised under existing policies after serving in work-charged positions, while others had been appointed on compassionate grounds or through other approved procedures.
The cases presented to NSF included seven employees regularised under Agriculture and Urban Development, one compassionate appointment under Industries and Commerce, seven appointments through the NSSB under Rule 3, Clause 3, in Agriculture, one appointment for the next of kin of an Oting incident victim under Works and Housing, and three Group D appointments approved by the Government under Food and Civil Supplies and PHED.
Vitso clarified that the seven Agriculture appointees were in the NSSB queue system.
He said the Federation would examine the individual cases to determine whether the appointments and regularisations had been made on the grounds cited by the Government and whether they complied with merit and due process. He said the NSF would not take a final position without assessing the merits of each case.
Eight NPSC posts and 22 NSSB appointments: NSF identified eight employees still occupying posts under the NPSC category despite having been appointed outside the Commission’s purview. These included two Foresters under Environment, Forest and Climate Change; a Platoon Commander and an Assistant District Commandant under Home Guards and Civil Defence; two Assistant Station Superintendents under Nagaland State Transport; an Information Assistant under Information and Public Relations; and a Stenographer under Works and Housing.
Vitso said the Cabinet Subcommittee had assured the Federation that the services of all eight employees would be terminated. The NSF demanded immediate action, maintaining that appointments made outside the established recruitment process could not be allowed to continue.
Under the NSSB category, the Federation identified 22 posts occupied by individuals appointed after the Board was constituted and demanded their immediate termination.
Another 47 NSSB-related appointments were made after the Federation’s representation dated August 31, 2019, seeking a ban on appointments until the Board was established, but before the NSSB was formally constituted. The Cabinet Subcommittee had asked the NSF to consider these cases in view of the timing of the appointments. Vitso said the Federation would examine the circumstances and merits of the cases before deciding its position.
He said the NSF had earlier written to the Chief Minister on August 21, 2019, seeking a blanket ban on appointments until the NSSB was constituted. The Federation had taken August 31, 2019, as the cutoff date for examining appointments in connection with its demand.
Vitso reiterated that all appointments found to be illegal or irregular must be discontinued and that sanctioned posts vacated following termination or resignation should be referred immediately to the NPSC and NSSB for open recruitment. He also demanded the termination of employees appointed against non-sanctioned posts, irrespective of the mode of appointment.
NSF warns of renewed agitation: NSF president Mteisuding said the Federation had pursued the issue because alleged backdoor appointments affected students and youth aspiring to secure government jobs through fair and transparent recruitment.
Providing the background to the establishment of the NSSB, he said the Federation had submitted a representation to the Chief Minister on August 21, 2019, during the tenure of former NSF president Ninoto Awomi, seeking the Board’s establishment to promote meritocracy and transparency. The NSSB began functioning in February 2022, but the Federation subsequently identified alleged irregular appointments in various departments.
Mteisuding described the October 12 meeting as positive and said the Cabinet Subcommittee had assured the Federation that termination orders concerning certain departments would be issued by the end of the week. He said the NSF would monitor the Government’s follow-up action and decide its next course of action based on whether the assurances were fulfilled.
“If things are not okay, the Naga Students’ Federation will come out in the street and fight for justice,” he said, warning that the Federation would resume its agitation if the Government failed to act as assured.
He appealed to the public to support the campaign, saying collective action was necessary to ensure that aspiring students and youth received fair opportunities in government employment. NSF would inform the public of its next course of action after reviewing the Government’s response and the promised termination orders.
NSSB recruitment and further scrutiny: NSF general secretary Kenilo Kent said departments including Home, Forest, and Health and Family Welfare remained outside the NSSB’s purview due to technical and administrative challenges, including human resource constraints, service book requirements and categorisation of posts. He said the State Government was working to address these issues while the NSF continued to press for a uniform and transparent recruitment system.
Kent said that since the NSSB began operating in February 2022, a total of 1,511 Group C posts had been filled through eight examination cycles. However, the Federation had identified 109 alleged illegal appointments across 16 departments and would extend its scrutiny to other departments under the second phase of its campaign.
He urged citizens to report suspected irregular or illegal appointments to the NSF office, assuring that the confidentiality of those providing information would be maintained. He also thanked the Cabinet Subcommittee and the State Government for taking up the issue, saying coordinated efforts could improve transparency and create fairer opportunities for aspiring candidates.
Meanwhile, NSF assistant general secretary Veze Tünye clarified that the campaign was not directed against individuals but against a system that undermined fairness, transparency and meritocracy. He appealed to appointees aware of irregularities in their recruitment to voluntarily step down, stating that prolonged disputes could come at the expense of thousands of Naga youth seeking fair opportunities in government employment.
Vitso also announced that the NSF would submit a second list of alleged backdoor appointments, separate from the ongoing cases involving the 16 departments. He acknowledged that addressing the issue might take time but said the Federation would continue to pursue the matter until the concerns were addressed and recruitment based on fairness, merit and transparency was upheld.