The Centre is considering the names of former Lok Sabha speaker P A Sangma and Rajya Sabha member Swaraj Kaushal for appointment as political interlocutors to take forward the Naga peace process, home ministry sources said.
Deputy Prime Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani had on Monday indicated that the government may appoint politicians to continue the talks with National Socialist Council of Nagalim (I-M) leaders Isak Chishi Swu and Th Muivah.
K Padmanabhaiah, who has been instrumental in bringing the NSCN (I-M) leaders to India, will also continue to be part of the process, they said.
Kaushal, former governor of Mizoram, had been negotiating with the NSCN (I-M) leadership before being replaced by former Union home secretary K Padmanabhaiah. After his removal, he wrote in the Indian Express, "Don't trust this prime minister [Atal Bihari Vajpayee]."
However, he seems to have made amends and in a recent television discussion, Kaushal was all praise for the government's efforts to settle the Naga issue.
Sangma's name too had cropped up some time back, but he was not too keen on the job. With elections in Meghalaya around the corner, new equations are emerging between the Bharatiya Janata Party and Sangma, who has major stakes in the state.
Being from the northeast, Sangma would not only have been able to communicate with the NSCN (I-M) leadership, but may also be able to soften the stand of the Manipur government, which wants to retain the Naga-dominated regions in the state.
Meanwhile, Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga is expected to meet NSCN (I-M) leaders in Delhi shortly to sort out some ticklish issues. Muivah, who has dealt with him, had on Monday described him as a man of peace during his press conference in New Delhi.
The government had offered to appoint him as interlocutor, but Zoramthanga declined on the plea that he would not be able to do justice to his job as chief minister.
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