Top Naga leaders Isak Chisi Swu and Thuingaleng Muivah arrived in Delhi from Amsterdam late on Wednesday night to hold crucial talks with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in a bid to solve the insurgency issue.
"We are thankful to the Indian government for inviting us for talks. We are here to find a peaceful solution to the Naga problem," National Socialist Council of Nagalim (I-M) chairman Swu to newspersons at the airport.
The government's interlocutor K Padmanabhaiah and a large number of flag-waiving Naga supporters were present to receive the two leaders.
The Naga leaders are scheduled to meet Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at his Race Course Road residence on Thursday at 1930 IST while their appointment with Deputy Prime Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani is yet to be finalised.
They are also expected to call on Leader of the Opposition and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Defence Minister George Fernandes, former Lok Sabha speaker P A Sangma, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Laloo Prasad Yadav.
The government would be providing them with security in keeping with the threat perception to the lives of the two leaders. On Thursday, the duo is expected to visit Rajghat and pay homage to Mahatma Gandhi. All this has, however, not gone down too well with some people, who accuse the government of treating them like visiting dignitaries.
The NSCN (I-M) delegation is expected to comprise 36 members, including some personal security officers of the two leaders. Twenty-two have already reached Delhi while the rest would be accompanying Muivah and Isak.
Two cabinet ministers of their underground government, R H Raising and Angelus Shimray, both of whom were arrested in 1995, would be part of the team.
The NSCN (I-M) leaders will leave India on January 16.
Meanwhile, Congress general secretary and in-charge of the Northeast, Mani Shankar Aiyar said his party has always endeavoured to bring peace to the region and favours talks with all those militant organisations, including the NSCN-Khaplang, that want peace to be restored in Nagaland through a political dialogue.
He applauded the role of Nagaland Chief Minister S C Jamir in resolving the issue despite the threats to his life from the NSCN (I-M).
With inputs from Tara Shankar Sahay and Josy Joseph in New Delhi and PTI
The Naga Issue: The Complete Coverage