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DIMAPUR, Aug 26 NNN : Is Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio quitting state politics to join national politics?
\nThese speculations have been doing the round ever sincea daily made a report about it on August 2.
\nThe correspondent stood by his report and said, \u201cYes, the Nagaland chief minister had expressed willingness to join the national politics when I interviewed him.\u201d
\nOn August 2, Neiphiu Rio had told him in New Delhi, \u201cWe are still discussing it within the party but I would like to come to New Delhi,\u201d hinting to shift his base of politics from Nagaland to the national capital.
\nA Nagaland paper said \u201cTo the surprise of many, a news report recently published in the paper mentioned about the possibility of chief minister Neiphiu Rio contesting in the next Lok Sabha election and shifting base to Delhi to dabble in national politics\u201d. Longkumer also said the news report was given credence by the fact that Rio himself was quoted as expressing his desire to make this political move.
\nTill date, there has been no rebuttal either by the ruling Naga Peoples Front (NPF) nor by the chief minister\u2019s office
\nto this news item thereby indicating that Rio is indeed not ruling out the prospect of contesting the next Lok Sabha polls.
\nRio\u2019s hope heaps on the line that National Democratic Alliance (NDA) may come to power at the Centre. Rio belongs
\nto NPF, the party steadfastly opposed by the Congress in Nagaland.
\nMeanwhile, attempts to contact Abu Metha, the media advisor of the Nagaland chief minister for confirmation by NNN proved futile today.
\nHowever, speculations in Nagaland about Neiphiu Rio quitting his post as the chief minister of Nagaland to join the national politics have been partly substantiated by the ongoing politiking of (NPF) in connection with the ensuing by-poll to the Noksen assembly constituency of Tuensang district, Nagaland scheduled for September 4.
\nC.M Chang was the member of Lok Sabha but had resigned to constest in the February 23, 2013 assembly election of Nagaland. He got elected from Noksen assembly constituency from the Naga Peoples Front (NPF) ticket and was assigned with the Education portfolio. He had however, resigned as the MLA in the month of March and retained the Lok Sabha seat and continues as an MP and also as the Education minister of Nagaland till date. However, early this month, the Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN), in which the NPF is the main constituent, had announced that CM Chang is the consensus candidate for Noksen by-poll.<\/p>\n\n