Dimapur, Aug. 2: Nagaland's lone Lok Sabha MP Neiphiu Rio has once again been suspended by the Naga People's Front, from both its primary and active membership, with immediate effect for "anti-parties activities".

Rio was first suspended from the NPF in May last year for "anti-party activities". The suspension was revoked by NPF president and then chief minister Shürhozelie Liezietsu only last month.

This time his suspension order, dated August 1, 2017, said Rio "has been involving in anti-party activities by way of associating with the expelled and suspended NPF MLAs even after his earlier suspension order was revoked by the party". The order was jointly signed by NPF working presidents Huskha Yepthomi and Apong Pongener, "as authorised by party president Dr Shürhozelie Liezietsu".

The order said Rio was "directly involved in splitting the NPF legislators for furtherance of his hidden agenda". It said that he was appointed the "so-called interim president of the NPF" by expelled and suspended NPF MLAs on July 31, 2017, "speaks volumes of his anti-party activities".

Rio was appointed interim president of the party at an NPF Legislature Party meeting held at the CM's residential bungalow, Kohima, on July 31, 2017. The meeting, which Rio attended as a special invitee, was chaired by NPF Legislature Party leader T.R. Zeliang, who had taken oath as the chief minister of Nagaland for the second time on July 19, 2017. Zeliang claimed 36 NPF MLAs attended the meeting.

An NPF Legislature Party statement, released by the CMO after the meeting, said the interim NPF president "shall be empowered with all the functions and prerogatives of the president of the NPF under the constitution of the NPF to take decisions in the overall interests of the Nagas with immediate effect."

The meeting resolved to empower the interim president to appoint divisional-level office-bearers of the party and organise a convention of the NPF at the earliest.

A committee was constituted to assist the interim president to "put in place the state-level organisational structure of the NPF to be approved at the general convention of the NPF".

The meeting claimed that "all decisions taken by the NPF under the leadership of Shürhozelie Liezietsu after July 19, 2017, shall be rendered null and void." On July 29, the NPF Legislature Party had demanded Shurhozelie's resignation as party president within 15 days.