Naga People’s Front distances itself from its leader’s anti-Modi comments - Hindustan Times
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Naga People’s Front distances itself from its leader’s anti-Modi comments

ByAlice Yhoshü
Feb 25, 2022 12:10 PM IST

The Bharatiya Janata Party called it inappropriate for the leader to propagate religious fanaticism and extreme hate politics at an election rally

KOHIMA: The Naga People’s Front (NPF) has distanced itself from its working president Huska Yepthomi’s comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took exception to them. In a video clip, Yepthomi is heard calling Modi “a big liar” in poll-bound Manipur earlier this week.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a public meeting in Manipur on February 22. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a public meeting in Manipur on February 22. (ANI)

The clip has been circulating on social media platforms and prompted the BJP to issue a statement days after Modi addressed a public meeting in Manipur on February 22.

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“At no point of time did the prime minister make any utterances that could be misconstrued as lies. It came as a shock as to how a senior NPF leader could come up with such a crazy idea as to hurl accusations against the prime minister of being a liar. The daydreaming speech made by Huska Yepthomi is uncalled for; it only goes on to show his declining mental state,” the Nagaland unit of the BJP said in the statement.

The party called it inappropriate for the NPF leader to propagate religious fanaticism and extreme hate politics at an election rally for political gains. “The Nagaland state BJP unit appeals to the citizens of both Nagaland and Manipur states not to be swayed by the depraved mentality that obviously loved to play with faith and religion for political gimmicks,” the statement said without elaborating.

The NPF called Yepthomi comments his personal views. “The opinion rendered by some individuals here and there does not necessarily reflect the stand of the party. The NPF is consistent in our support to BJP in Manipur even though they severed ties with us in Nagaland,” said NPF leader Achumbemo Kikon.

Kikon, who is in Manipur campaigning for his party, said the NPF has very high regard for Modi, particularly when it comes to the Naga peace process. “We have no doubt over his sincerity to bring a logical settlement on the long-pending issue.”

The BJP has fielded its candidates for the 10 seats the NPF is contesting in Manipur. Kikon said the two parties have no issues with each other and they were in a friendly contest. “Our understanding with BJP in Manipur continues.”

The two parties have been allies in Nagaland for decades. They parted ways during the 2018 assembly elections when BJP got into a pre-poll seat-sharing arrangement with the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP). The NDPP and BJP subsequently formed the government. In 2021, the NDPP, the BJP, and the NPF came together to form the United Democratic Alliance.

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