The Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday extended the ban on the National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K), by notifying that the Naga insurgent group has been engaged in violence, extortion, and secessionist activities.
The militant group has been involved in 104 violent incidents resulting in the killing of seven security forces personnel, six civilians and the abduction of 75 civilians since September 28, 2015, the MHA said in a notification issued on Monday.
The insurgent group had in 2015 abrogated the ceasefire agreement with the Centre and carried out a string of attacks, including killing 18 soldiers in an ambush in Manipur the same year.
The outfit was declared as an unlawful association under section 3(1) of the UAPA.
The central government of the opinion that if there is no immediate curb and control of unlawful activities of the NSCN-K, the organisation may make fresh recruitment, indulge in violent terrorist and secessionist activities, collect funds and endanger the lives of innocent citizens and security forces personnel. Therefore, circumstances do exist which render it necessary to declare the NSCN-K as an unlawful association with immediate effect, the notification released by MHA said.
The central government “is of the firm opinion that it is necessary to declare the NSCN-K along with all its factions, wings and front organisations as an unlawful association with immediate effect”, it said.
The NSCN-K continues to be a proscribed organisation for decades now and the ban is extended every five years. Its leader S S Khaplang, a Myanmarese Naga, died in 2017 after leading the group for decades. The outfit is now run by two of his deputies.
Its rival faction NSCN-IM is currently involved in peace negotiations with the central government to find a lasting peaceful solution to the seven decades-old insurgency problem of Nagaland.