Mizoram’s Lal Thanhawla Cong’s lone face saver

AIZAWL: After a resounding defeat in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Delhi, the Congress managed a face-saver of sorts on Monday winning 32 out of the 39 seats for the 40-member Mizoram assembly. There will be re-polling in one seat on December 11 where EVMs developed a snag.
The opposition Mizo National front, which once wanted to take Mizoram out of the Indian Union, is a distant second with five seats and leads in two.It’s Congress’s fourth electoral victory after Mizoram attained statehood in 1987, following the historic 1986 Mizo Accord between the Centre and MNF led by the legendary Laldenga, and second straight win.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi, vice-president Rahul and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh were key campaigners for the November 25 election, considered the cleanest in the country with the church playing the role of a poll watchdog.
MNF’s partner, Mizoram People’s Conference, won just one seat. Congress’s victory was attributed to chief minister Lal Thanhawla’s populist measures like the New Land Use Policy – a sop to farmers.
The Election Commission ordered repolling after snags in EVMs at Tialdawngilung in Lawngtlai East constituency, according to joint chief electoral officer H Lalengmawia, which will take place on December 11, with the results on December 12.
Four-term CM Lal Thanhawla (71) won from two seats, Serchhip and Hrangturzo. It’s his ninth electoral victory since Mizoram became a Union territory in 1972 and a full-fledged state in 1987. A pleased Lal Thanhawala thanked voters for giving the party another term to carry forward its development work. He is all set to become CM for the fifth time.
Thousands of Congress activists thronged Congress Bhavan in Aizawl as the results poured in. MNF headquarters on the other hand wore deserted look. The elections saw a high 81% turnout. In a state where there are more women voters than men, all six female candidates lost the polls.
In the last election too, Lal Thanhawla led Congress to a landslide victory by winning 32 seats. MNF had won three seats, MPC two, Maraland Democratic Front (MDF) one and Zoram Nationalist Party two.
This time three opposition parties, MNF, MPC and MDF, had formed a pre-poll truck called the Mizoram Democratic Alliance. But, the alliance failed to make a dent in Congress’s support base as another regional party, ZNP, had split the anti-Congress votes.