State’s Response to Intra-state Conflicts: The Case of North-East India

Abstract Contemporary state politics is marked by intra-state conflicts, many of which have ignited civil wars. In the midst of diversity, and despite her success in sustaining democracy, India still faces intra-state conflicts, which often threaten its territorial integrity. Presently, Jammu and Kashmir and the North-Eastern States are the most talked about cases in this regard. This article studies the nature of conflicts in North-Eastern India and the way the state has responded to such conflicts. The study finds the existence of five major types of conflicts and almost an equal number of responses from the state. Though, over the years, India has successfully resolved many forms of disputes, in the case of the North-Eastern States, on the contrary, state’s responses have resulted into new cases of conflicts. Thus, in the absence of adequate principles and institutions, bringing a lasting solution to these issues does not look like achievable in the immediate future.