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Mizoram polls: Lists of all 4 major parties out; BJP to contest on 23 seats
Ex-minister Beichhua, who resigned from the MNF and joined the BJP, will be contesting from his own constituency of Saiha. The party has given a ticket to PS Zatluanga from Champai North
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday released two lists of 23 candidates for the upcoming Mizoram assembly election scheduled for November 7. Friday is the last date for filing nominations for voting to the 40-member assembly.
Other major parties, including the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF), the opposition Congress and the Zoram Peoples’ Movement (ZPM), have already declared their candidates.
The BJP, which had contested 39 seats in 2018 (managing to win just one) has fielded 16 fewer candidates this time. The party had secured only 8% of the total votes in the Christian-majority state and was in opposition despite MNF being part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre.
Lalrinliana Sailo, a former MNF legislator who recently resigned as Speaker of the House and joined the BJP has been fielded from the Mamit constituency.
Ex-minister Beichhua, who resigned from the MNF and joined the BJP, will be contesting from his own constituency of Saiha. The party has given a ticket to PS Zatluanga from Champai North.
State BJP president Vanlalhmuaka, who has been fielded from the Dampa (SC) constituency, said: “Even if we don’t win, we are confident that we will be part of the new government. We are willing to form a government with any political party except the Congress.”
The Congress on October 17 announced their list of 40 candidates for the upcoming election. There are four sitting MLAs, three former candidates, nine ex-MLAs and 24 first-timers on the party list.
The Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP) – the largest student body in Mizoram – had requested all political parties not to field women candidates married to non-Mizo/tribal, and they strongly stated that “if such women candidates are contesting, they will focus their energy on such women to lose the election”.
Speaking to Hindustan Times on the Congress fielding a woman candidate married to a non-Mizo, Lal Thanzara, ex MLA and senior vice president of Mizoram Congress, said: “The MZP requested the party not to have a woman candidate married to a non-Mizo. But Lunglei South candidate Merium Hrangchal’s husband is a Gorkha who has resided in Mizoram since his grandparents. The family has a vote in Mizoram, and Hrangchal’s husband has a tribal certificate and is a Christian who identifies as a Mizo.”
“Even though he may have a non-Mizo bloodline, the Congress party accepts him as a Mizo. We understand that MZP has made the request out of their aim to preserve the Mizo identity, but once they understand the whole picture, they will not continue to attack us,” he added.
All four major parties in the state– MNF, Zoram People’s Movement, the BJP and the Congress are all fielding women candidates – a new trend for the state. In the 2018 polls, MNF had not fielded even one women candidate. Congress had fielded one, ZPM two and BJP six.
