Nagaland's ruling NDPP likely to decide on merger with NPF on Sep 12, say party leaders

Kohima, Sep 8 (PTI) The ruling NDPP in Nagaland will decide on its merger with the NPF on September 12, party leaders said on Monday.

Ahead of the scheduled Central Executive Board meeting of the party on September 12, NDPP leaders and members of its frontal organisations were given a "preliminary informal briefing" by its top brass, they said.

The meeting, which will be held behind closed doors, will formally deliberate on the proposed merger with the NPF, they added.

The NDPP has earlier emphasised that the matter will be discussed democratically in accordance with its constitution.

A resolution was passed at the NPF's Central Executive Council meeting on Saturday, formally urging Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio to rejoin the party, holding his leadership as crucial for its future and the broader interests of the Naga people.

The outcome of the NDPP meeting is expected to significantly reshape Nagaland's political landscape.

Formed in 2017, the NDPP came to power in the 2018 assembly elections, ousting the then TR Zeliang-led NPF government.

In the 60-member House, the NPF had 26 seats, while the NDPP, then a debutant, secured 18 seats. Its pre-poll ally, the BJP, won 12 seats, enabling the alliance to form the government with the support of a JD(U) legislator and an Independent MLA.

In the 2023 assembly elections, the NDPP emerged as the single largest party with 25 seats. With the subsequent joining of seven NCP MLAs, the NDPP currently has 32 members in the House, while the BJP retains 12.

The ruling coalition, the Peoples' Democratic Alliance (PDA), is supported by the remaining 16 MLAs, including five of the NPP, two each from NPF and LJP (Ram Vilas), one JD(U), and four Independents.

In 2002, Rio resigned as home minister in the SC Jamir-led Congress government and revived the dying regional party, the Naga Peoples' Council (NPC), which was later rechristened as the Nagaland Peoples' Front (NPF).

A veteran politician, Rio led the NPF to victory, serving three consecutive terms as chief minister before moving to Delhi as Nagaland's lone Lok Sabha MP in 2014.

He joined the NDPP in 2018 after the NPF severed ties with the BJP over seat-sharing disputes.

Rio's entry significantly strengthened the NDPP, which then formed a pre-poll alliance with the BJP and contested the 2018 state elections.

Under Rio's leadership, the NDPP has become a dominant regional political force, while the NPF has been reduced to just two members in the assembly. PTI NBS NBS SOM