On Monday, September 22, 2025, the Indian Central Government announced a five-year extension of its ban on the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang), or NSCN (K), and all its associated groups. This decision comes as a direct response to the organization’s continued engagement in activities deemed detrimental to India’s sovereignty and national unity.
According to an official notification from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), this renewed prohibition will take effect on September 28 and remain in force for half a decade.
The government firmly believes that the NSCN (K) harbors the explicit goal of establishing an independent Nagaland. This proposed state would encompass Naga-inhabited territories across the Indo-Myanmar border, achieved through secession from India. Furthermore, the group has reportedly forged alliances with other banned organizations, including the United Liberation Front of Asom (Independent) [ULFA (I)], the People’s Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK), and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Beyond its political ambitions, the NSCN (K) is also implicated in serious criminal activities such as kidnapping for ransom, extorting money from businesses, government personnel, and ordinary citizens. They are known to possess illegal arms and ammunition, and have allegedly received support from anti-India entities in various foreign countries to acquire weaponry and other aid.
Therefore, by invoking the authority granted under sub-section (1) of section 3 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, the Central Government has officially designated the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang), including all its splinter groups, divisions, and associated fronts, as an unlawful association, as stated in the official notification.
The Home Ministry detailed a pattern of significant involvement by NSCN (K) members in various illicit activities between September 28, 2020, and April 30, 2025. During this period, 71 criminal cases were registered against its operatives, leading to 56 chargesheets and the prosecution of 35 individuals. The group was linked to 51 additional criminal acts, resulting in 85 arrests and the surrender of 69 members. Authorities also confiscated a substantial cache of weapons and explosives, including 69 firearms, 52 magazines, 931 live ammunition rounds, 10 grenades, 150 detonators, three explosive gel tubes, 200 grams of trinitrotoluene, 1.5 kilograms of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and 800 grams of other explosive materials.
Tragically, 13 underground members of the group were killed during confrontations with police and security forces over the same timeframe.
Furthermore, the state governments of Nagaland, Manipur, and Arunachal Pradesh formally endorsed classifying the NSCN (K) as an unlawful association under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
The central government firmly asserts that the NSCN (K)’s actions pose a direct threat to India’s sovereignty and integrity. The notification warns that if these activities are not promptly suppressed, the group could potentially reorganize, rearm, expand its membership, acquire advanced weaponry, and inflict further casualties on both civilians and security personnel, thereby intensifying its anti-national agenda. Consequently, for these stated reasons, the government reiterates its stance that the NSCN (K) and all its affiliated entities are an unlawful association.
The Home Ministry further declared that current circumstances necessitate the immediate classification of the NSCN (K), including all its associated groups, as an unlawful association, effective September 28.
In light of this, and by leveraging the powers outlined in the proviso to sub-section (3) of section 3 of the aforementioned Act, the notification mandates that this declaration takes immediate effect from September 28, 2025, for a duration of five years, unless otherwise modified by an order under section 4 of the Act.
The NSCN (K) has been a proscribed organization for many decades, with its ban routinely extended every five years. Its founder and long-time leader, S.S. Khaplang, a Myanmarese Naga, passed away in 2017. The organization is currently led by two of his former deputies.
Meanwhile, a rival faction, the NSCN-IM, remains engaged in ongoing peace discussions with the central government, aiming to achieve a lasting and peaceful resolution to Nagaland’s seven-decade-long insurgency.