The corporate insurgents of Nagaland: A legacy of NSCN-IM

The younger generation of Nagas, connected via social media to the rest of India, expresses far less sympathy for insurgency. Their aspiration is opportunity.

- ASHISH SINGH

Nagaland, often described as one of the most socially progressive societies in the Northeast, is paradoxically also one of the most conflict-scarred. Its vibrant mosaic of tribes, each fiercely proud ofitsheritage, has long grappled with the balance between preserving identity and fostering unity. At the centre of this struggle stands the idea ofa singular Naga identity—an aspiration that hasinspired generations but hasalso been deeply contested.

For decades, insurgent movements have claimed tobe the custodians of this vision. The most prominent among them, the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah), or NSCN-IM, emerged in the 1980s as a militant organisation that sought to carve out an independent Naga homeland. While it once claimed legitimacy as a political movement, its legacy today is increasingly defined not by ideology but by racketeering, extortion, and corporate-style profiteering. Among Nagas, especially the younger generation more connected to mainstream. India, resentment against these practices is on the rise.

FROM REVOLUTIONARY TO RACKETEER

The NSCN-IM was formed in 1980 after a split within the Naga National Council (NNC). Its founders, Thuingaleng Muivah and Isak Chishi Swu, positioned the groupas the inheritor of the Naga struggle for sovereignty. Over the years, it builta parallel state structure with ministries, taxation departments, and armed wings. For many Nagas, the NSCN-IM was initially seen asa vehicle for asserting their rights. But over time, the revolutionary mantle gave way to entrenched interests. The group institutionalised “taxation” systems, demanding money from traders, government employees, and contractors. In practice, this became ashadow economy—onethat allowed the organisation to sustain itself while draining Nagaland’s fragile economy.