We’re free to hire, there’s no ban on us, says NSCN

North East insurgent major NSCN (I-M) today confirmed it had put out a recruitment notice — as reported by The Indian Express — an...

North East insurgent major NSCN (I-M) today confirmed it had put out a recruitment notice — as reported by The Indian Express — and said it saw no problem in ‘‘regularising’’ services of personnel since it wasn’t a banned organisation.

NSCN (I-M)’s Phunting Shimray, who holds the rank of a Brigadier in the organisation and is convenor of the Ceasefire Monitoring Group, told The Indian Express that ‘‘the Government of the People’s Republic of Nagaland is not an unlawful organisation and is free to issue advertisements or press releases.’’ Its recruitment notice, sent to offices of some newspapers in Dimapur in Nagaland, was published as a news item.

Issued on Sept 7 by N Raikham, described as a member-secretary of the ‘Civil Service Recruitment Board of the Government of the People’s Republic of Nagaland’, the notice invited applications from ‘‘eligible candidates for filling up certain posts of Under Secretary, Section Officers, Assistant Section Officers (Office Asstt Grade I), and Office Assistants (Grade II and III).’’

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It also specified qualifications and experience: (a) For Under Secretary, candidates have to be graduates with six years of ‘regular service’; (b) for Section Officers, graduates with three years of ‘regular service’ or under-graduates with six years service; (c) Assistant Section Officers (OA-Grade I) under-graduates with three years of ‘regular service’; (d) Office Assistant Grade II matriculates with three years of ‘regular service’; and, (e) for Office Assistant Grade III, candidates should be at least under-matric.

This recruitment notice has raised many eyebrows. Lt Gen (retd) R V Kulkarni, chairman of the Ceasefire Monitoring Group (CFMG), said it was a ‘‘serious matter’’ but pointed out that legally the NSCN was no longer a banned outfit.

K Chawang, Deputy Kilonser (Minister) for Information and Publicity in the NSCN (I-M), too said that there’s ‘‘nothing illegal about the recruitment’’ since it wasn’t a banned outfit. But Section C of Clause 6 of the Ceasefire ground rules states that there will be ‘‘no kidnapping and recruitment’’ by the NSCN. However, Shimray maintained that ‘‘it is anyway recruitment for the civil wing and the civil wing is also not banned.”

The recruitment notice said candidates were required to submit their application forms ‘‘through proper channels’’ to the recruitment board latest by September 30. A written test would be held at the outfit’s council HQ on October 14, Dimapur newspapers reported. A ‘GPRN’ statement, subsequent to the notice, claimed that there was no fresh recruitment but only ‘‘regularisation’’ of services of ‘‘existing’’ employees.