An elusive line in an elusive frontier: Delineating the historical trajectory of the inner line in India’s northeast

The Inner Line remains one of the most contentious yet enduring legacies of colonial rule in the erstwhile British India’s northeast frontier. However, there is a major disconnect between the popular conception of the Inner Line as a legal shield protecting ‘vulnerable’ communities, and the scholarly deconstruction of the Inner Line as a colonial instrument designed for the exploitation of resources and the policing of hill communities. This article traces the historical trajectory of the Inner Line in India’s northeast and highlights the significant moments when the Inner Line was subjected to varying interpretations. It argues that the history of the Inner Line was characterised by flexibility and instability not only in its physical manifestation as a geographical marker but more particularly in its perceived intent and purpose. Delineating the shifts in the roles and functions that were ascribed to the Inner Line at different historical junctures, this article attempts to reconcile the varied and even contradictory understandings of the Inner Line that continue to persist in postcolonial Northeast India.