Nagaland legislator calls for tribal balance in police postings

KOHIMA — Naga People’s Front (NPF) legislator Kuzholuzo Neinu on Thursday raised concern over the practice of transferring and posting police personnel within their home districts, cautioning that it could lead to bias during conflict situations.

Speaking on the floor of the Nagaland Assembly, Neinu stressed the importance of implementing tribal composition guidelines in police transfers and postings and urged the Nagaland Police to address this issue proactively to ensure better control and impartiality, especially in the event of ethnic clashes.

Neinu highlighted the disproportionate representation of certain tribes within their respective districts, citing examples like Phek (64% Chakhesang personnel), Mokokchung (74% Ao personnel), Zunheboto (82% Sumi personnel), and Wokha (over 91% Lotha personnel).

If at all ethnic clashes situation like that of Manipur are to arise in the state, the situation could be even more dire, because most personnel and forces are composed of their own tribes and there are chances of favouring own people, he maintained.

Currently, the Nagaland Police does not have a comprehensive transfer policy covering constabulary, non-commissioned officer, and non-gazzette officers, and therefore, he urged the department to develop a comprehensive transfer and posting policy in the state.

Responding to Neinu’s concerns, Deputy Chief Minister (Home) Y Patton appealed to all elected members to refrain from influencing police transfers and postings to favour their districts. Acknowledging the prevalence of such requests, he declared: “From today onwards, we will not entertain (these requests) and don’t bring it.”

Maintaining that this system was self-inflicted, he went on to say that despite efforts over the past five years, the Nagaland Police has struggled to improve the transfer system due to resistance from personnel wanting to remain in their home districts.

He also said that attempts to transfer officers and personnel stationed at the same location for three years have been unsuccessful.