The Naga youth council elections: a village democracy that never sleeps

In Nagaland’s villages, the youth council — the bachelors’ association that keeps the water running, the village clean and the festivals honest — is also a school of politics.

Council elections are contested with the vigour of national ones, and the campaigns teach lessons that stay with their candidates.

State-level politicians are invariably council alumni: ‘Everyone learns to govern by first governing a village.’