Kohima: Dimapur Government College hosted the PA Sangma Dialogues on September 18. The event focused on peace, development, and federalism in the Northeast. Departments of History and Political Science organized the seminar alongside the PA Sangma Foundation. Meghalaya Rajya Sabha MP James K Sangma missed the event. He had to attend a meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee in New Delhi regarding the FCRA Amendment Bill, 2026.
Mmhonlumo Kikon and food writer Avantika Roohi led the discussion. Kikon challenged local perceptions of political leadership. He recounted a past experience where a professor questioned his knowledge because he was a politician. He called out the double standard of demanding educated leaders while dismissing informed policy talk. "I have one problem with professors in Nagaland," Kikon stated during the session.
Kikon pressed for better public debate. He claimed that 99% of social media discourse on the Frontier Nagaland Territorial Authority was hogwash. He noted that most participants never bothered to read the actual legislation. The speaker explained the difference between the Sixth Schedule and the Frontier Nagaland Territorial Authority. The former carries constitutional status. The latter is a political agreement between the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Nagaland government, and the Eastern Nagaland Peoples Organization.
He tied these issues to Article 371A. This provision protects Naga customs and land rights. Yet, Kikon warned that autonomy must serve the people. He raised red flags regarding how customary institutions handle violence against women. He noted that traditional village structures sometimes suppress reports of rape or domestic violence to save face. Customary systems must evolve to protect individual rights. Informed citizens must scrutinize these institutions to ensure they deliver justice instead of silence.
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