Politics in Mizoram is no longer bipolar

The multi-pronged contest for Mizoram’s ninth Legislative Assembly has reached its climax. National parties such as the Congress, the BJP and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on one hand as well as prominent regional outfits including the Mizo National Front (MNF) and Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) are battling it out for the 40-seat Assembly.

- CV Lalmalsawmi

There are also 27 independent candidates including those representing ethno-religious ideologies such as Zoram Thar, making their presence known. That among the 174 candidates in the fray there are only 16 women indicates that Mizoram’s political scene continues to be largely male-centric and male-dominated.

As voters head to the polling booths today, speculation is rife about a possible hung Assembly. There are already talks about post-poll alliances and the performances of the BJP and ZPM (which won one and eight seats in the 2018 assembly elections respectively) in a state where the MNF-Congress binary system has been in place for decades. The emergence of a viable “third front” regional party in the form of ZPM presents a real threat to the MNF’s run for a second term under the leadership of incumbent chief minister, Pu Zoramthanga. Meanwhile, the BJP with its 23 candidates is aiming hard to capitalise on minority sentiments in pockets to increase its vote share even while a majority of the Mizo public — across parties and neutral voters — continues to reject its ideology.