GUWAHATI: Lotuses might not be blooming in great numbers in Mizoram, just as yet, but BJP has scripted history by opening its account in the hill state, with veteran leader Buddha Dhan Chakma winning from Tuichawng constituency in Lawngtlai district.
Buddha Dhan, who was leading the vote count since morning, defeated Rasik M Chakma of Mizo National Front by a comfortable margin.
The saffron party has been present in the state over two decades, having contested five elections, but failing to win a single Assembly seat prior to this election.
So, this development is significant not for the sole seat won – the party had expected to win at least four to six seats – but for the fact that it has bagged its first seat in Christian-dominated Mizoram, where BJP has not quite been a favourite among the Church and civil society alike.
“I am very excited although this was expected though. I congratulate people who have believed in me and voted for me. Development and bringing about a change has been our agenda, especially for 36 Tuichawng constituency, which is underdeveloped. So, improving education, road, telecommunication and power will be my priority,” BD Chakma told the media after securing his victory certificate from the returning officer.
A former minister in the Congress government, BD Chakma had left the party prior to the elections to join BJP in the wake of an “internal conflict” in the ruling party.
BJP sources in Mizoram said that while more seats were expected but the fact that the party has earned a toehold in the state was good news.
“We are partly happy as Congress, which has ruled the state for 10 long years, has been wiped out, almost. Now, we are looking forward to MNF, which is under North East Democratic Alliance, to accommodate our winning candidate in the team,” a spokesperson from BJP said.
Political analysts attribute the BJP “arrival” in Mizoram to the emphasis put by the party leaders even though people in the state still consider the saffron party as a “mainstream Hindu party”.
“The BJP leaders’ emphasis on Mizoram and the political chemistry helped them get a toehold,” Shyamkanu Mahanta, a political analyst, told The Shillong Times.
Cong debacle
Analysing reasons for Congress putting up a poor show, with chief minister Lal Thanhawla losing from both Serchhip and Champhai South constituencies after a winning run in the past, experts here attribute the cause of the ruling party’s debacle to the “failure to create jobs and improve economy”.
“Nothing much has happened in terms of job creation in Mizoram over the past ten years, a fact which did not go well with the voters, a sizeable portion of whom were young. Despite huge potential in tourism and power, not much was done by Lal Thanhawla to develop the sectors and create basic infrastructure and employment. So this was a vote against Lal Thanhawla and poor governance,” Mahanta said.
The lifting of the liquor ban also did not go well with the Church and civil society. Mizoram was a “dry state” for 17 years, till the Congress decided to replace the Mizoram Liquor Total Prohibition Act with the Mizoram Liquor Prohibition and Control Act in 2014.
“After MNF was the best alternative, a party, voters in Mizoram associated to regional aspirations,” he added.
Besides, bad roads, poor economy and developments before the elections such as senior Congress leaders leaving the party and joining other parties had the odds stacked against Congress, not to mention anti-incumbency.
“Besides, the alliance of Congress and BJP in the Chakma Autonomous Development Council has in a way affected their chances. People have cast their votes in favour of a regional party which they believed could give stability and bring development issues to the forefront,” said another analyst here.