This Friday, the northeastern state of Mizoram welcomed a new chief minister as Lalduhoma, the leader of the Zoram People’s Movement, took oath for the top government job. Accompanying him were 11 ministers and four ministers of state who also took the oath. In a significant move by the ZPM, the new Cabinet introduced a female face, Lalrinpuii—a rare development in the state's political history.
The new government, led by former IPS officer Lalduhoma, faces a daunting challenge in fulfilling the hopes of the voters. The state is grappling with a refugee crisis, hosting over 40,000 refugees from Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Manipur. As promised to the voters, the new government is tasked with reducing corruption within the administration, creating new job opportunities, and strengthening the state's poor infrastructure. It also has to combat the drug menace. According to an official from the state’s Excise and Narcotics Department, 68 people, including 11 women, have died due to drug abuse as of November this year.
MNF Refuses to Look Beyond Zoramthanga’s Leadership
After the Mizo National Front lost power to the Zoram People’s Movement, the party president Zoramthanga, a three-time former chief minister, resigned from the post, taking moral responsibility for the party’s defeat. It should be noted that in this election, Zoramthanga lost from his Aizawl East-I seat to ZPM’s vice-president Lalthansanga. Although this isn’t the first time he failed to enter the state assembly, the party’s Core Committee and Political Affairs Committee rejected his resignation, citing the electoral outcome as the collective responsibility of the party. While Zoramthanga's leadership and political knowledge are deemed crucial for the party, the MNF must start looking for his successor. At 79 years old, by the next state elections, he would be 84, and considering he has held the president post of the party for the last 33 years, a generational change is essential, learning from the setback in the recent electoral mandate where the electorate voted for a change in the political system, choosing ZPM and its untested leader, Lalduhoma.
Political Violence Crucial Issue In Poll-bound Sikkim
The state assembly elections are only four months away in the Himalayan state of Sikkim. This time, one of the critical issues is political violence. This week, the former chief minister and Sikkim Democratic Front party president Pawan Kumar Chamling met with state governor Laxman Prasad Acharya. Leading a 15-member SDF delegation, Chamling apprised the governor of the state’s declining law and order situation.
This visit to the governor comes days after SDF cadres were allegedly beaten by the ruling Sikkim Krantikari Morcha in Rinchenpong. Chamling alleged that since SKM came to power, there have been over 1000 cases of attacks on SDF workers, but the police have not registered a single FIR.
This year, the newly formed Citizen Action Party, on the occasion of the 154th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, visited the ruling SKM’s headquarters to spread the message of peace. The CAP delegation delivered a memorandum containing a message of peace and pleaded to cease political violence in the Himalayan state.
It is not only the Opposition parties like SDF and CAP that make allegations of political violence against SKM but also the BJP, which, although not a part of the government, is an ally of the party. In a democracy, every party has the right to conduct its activities, and political violence undermines democracy. As the ruling party, SKM has a significant responsibility to tackle political violence and ensure that democracy in the Himalayan state remains intact.
Tripura BJP's Focus On Tribal Belt Ahead Of Lok Sabha Polls
The Tripura BJP has received a significant boost ahead of the crucial Lok Sabha polls after the saffron party’s stunning victory in the three Hindi heartland states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh — accounting for 65 seats in the Lok Sabha. The party's state leadership is confident that in the 2024 polls, the royal scion Pradyot Debbarma’s TIPRA Motha will not be a factor in the tribal belt. Chief Minister Manik Saha himself claimed this.
For the saffron party, the Tripura East Lok Sabha constituency, reserved for the Scheduled Tribes, remains a concern. Although there has been a decline in momentum for Motha’s support in the tribal belt, particularly after the tribal party failed to emerge as the kingmaker in the state polls and BJP’s return to power.
The saffron party aims to capitalize on this situation, especially after its stunning performance in the three Hindi states. As part of this strategy, this week, the party’s tribal wing Janajati Morcha held a meeting attended by senior party leaders, including Manik Saha, state party president Rajib Bhattacharya, former deputy chief minister Jishnu Debbarma, state tribal affairs minister Bikash Debbarma, and industry minister Santana Chakma. Importantly, Jishnu is considered one of the probable candidates from the BJP in the Tripura East Lok Sabha constituency.
The notable absentee was the Tripura East Lok Sabha constituency’s representative Rebati Tripura. There have been strong speculations that he is unlikely to be repeated by the saffron party. The process of sidelining Rebati began when Biplab Deb was the chief minister of the state. He fell out with the state leadership after his political line of going solo in the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council polls in 2021 was rejected by the party. He opposed the party's alliance with the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura, which currently has one minister in the Manik Saha-led saffron government.
The author is a political commentator.
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