A senior official from the Nagaland Forest Department has urged the public to exercise caution when invoking Article 371A of the Constitution. The statement comes amid an intensifying dispute with the Centre Chakhesang Youth Organisation (CCYO) over a local wildlife case.
Addressing a Wildlife Week programme, K Hukato Chishi, Conservator of Forests (Southern Territorial Circle), described Article 371A as the “backbone” of Nagaland but warned against its misuse. "We are taking Article 371A as our defence in every issue, but we have to use it carefully,"
Chishi stated, cautioning that the provision—which safeguards Naga customary laws, social practices, and land ownership—is not immune to being altered or revoked by the Centre if stretched beyond its intent.
The friction escalated after the department detained community youth Vezhoto Hesuh for an alleged wildlife offence involving a Great Barbet.
In response, the CCYO launched a non-cooperation movement, temporarily lifting local hunting bans and asserting that departmental enforcement cannot disregard indigenous relationships with wildlife protected under Article 371A.
Forest authorities countered that the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, was officially adopted by the state assembly in 1981, making its statutory authority clear.