Reasons For Nagaland Government Constituting A Commission For RIIN

Nagaland’s government, on April 16, convened a crucial consultative meeting with all the tribal hours (bodies) and organisations “on the proper modalities and systems to achieve the objective of the Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland (RIIN), a register of indigenous inhabitants in the State. We will Further see Members of RIIN.
  has earlier set up a Committee on Inner Line Permit (ILP), which has recommended coming up with a master list known as Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland. According to a statement from the Nagaland government, the meeting will be held on April 16.

What is RIIN?

RIIN has its roots in the state government’s decision in 2019 to implement Inner Line Permit (ILP) under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation Act of 1873 throughout Dimapur district, which was erroneously or ignorantly overlooked for over 40 years. The ILP is an official travel document issued by the state government, allowing inward travel of foreigners and Indian citizens of other states into Nagaland for a limited period.

Background of RIIN

In 2019, the state government organised a Members of RIIN 3-Member committee to analyse, examine, and suggest RIIN adoption.

The RIIN Committee’s job was to figure out:

• The requirements for becoming an indigenous person.
• Authority to substantiate claims of indigenous ancestry.
• Registration as an indigenous inhabitant takes place at this location.
• The foundation for indigenous claims.
• The types of documentation that will be accepted as proof of indigenous ancestry.

Following protests from community-based and extremist organisations, the drill was halted.

Since then, the Nagaland government has been attempting to resurrect the RIIN initiative, which was started in July 2019 to stop outsiders from obtaining fraudulent indigenous certificates to obtain jobs and government benefits.

Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland

Naga Hoho, the Naga tribes’ apex body, recently issued a warning to the Nagaland government regarding constructing the Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland (RIIN), which is considered a consideration as a variation of Assam’s National Register of Citizens.

The State government had formed a three-members RIIN panel headed by retired bureaucrat Banuo Z. Jamir for “examining and advising” on the implementation of RIIN.

BASED ON GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS, the RIIN will be created following a thorough survey using a village-by-village and ward-by-ward list of indigenous residents. It will also be prepared with the help of each district’s administration.

After the RIIN is completed, no new indigenous inhabitant certificates will be granted, except for children born to the State’s indigenous inhabitants. They will get indigenous certificates along with birth certificates. The Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland database will be updated to reflect this change.

The RIIN will also be linked to the internet system for the Inner-Line Permit, a temporary document that non-natives must have to enter and travel in Nagaland.

The Objectives in regard to the formation of Commission For RIIN of preventing fake indigenous inhabitants’ certificates. The RIIN will be the master list of all indigenous inhabitants of the state.

Naga’s Concern

• Naga’s Exclusion:

If RIIN uses the 1st of December 1963 (the day Nagaland became a state) as the cut-off date for defining the state’s permanent residents, it is likely to omit Nagas who have moved to Nagaland from outside the state.

• Property Loss:

Many procedural irregularities will arise in the absence of records such as land pattas, house taxes paid, or members of RIIN in electoral rolls before December 1, 1963, even among the so-called pure Nagas of Nagaland.

• Can be treated as illegal:

Non-indigenous Nagas could be labelled “illegal immigrants,” with their lands and belongings seized. The Nagas’ vision of living together as a people and their desire to live with self-determination will be irreversibly shattered.

How will the list be prepared?

• The RIIN list will be based on “an extensive survey”.
• It will involve official records of indigenous residents from rural and (urban) wards and will be prepared under the supervision of the district administration.
• The list preparation will start on July 10, 2019, and the whole process will be completed within 60 days from the start.
• Designated teams of surveyors will be formed within seven days from the date of publication of the notification, and after that, these teams will be sent across each village and ward.
• The database will note each family’s original residence, current residence as well as the concerned Aadhaar

Conclusion:

The commission on Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland held a series of consultations with tribal organisations, the civil society and NGOs and submitted its report to the state government in 2019

Nagaland should continue with prudence in this venture in an already volatile region where the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 1958 is constantly expanded. The RIIN should not become a vehicle for turning insiders into outsiders.

In Assam, the NRC experiment resulted in a lot of political wrangling. Other Northeastern states would undoubtedly be paying close attention to what is happening in Assam and Nagaland. Emotional, and political issues must not be permitted to drive the creation of a citizen registry.