By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Aug 7: In a major jolt to the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Northeast, senior party leader from Nagaland and national spokesperson Mmhonlümo Kikon tendered his resignation from the party on Thursday, apparently owing to discomfort over the saffron party’s policy on minorities.
In a briefly-worded letter addressed to the president of the BJP Nagaland Unit, Kikon said he needed to recalibrate his journey so that he can explore new avenues of public engagement and policy work so that he can contribute to society in different ways.
“Since joining the BJP more than a decade ago, I had the honour of serving the party and contributing to its growth and activities in various capacities and responsibilities entrusted to me,” Kikon said, adding that his association with the BJP has been an enriching experience having served as Prabhari of Mizoram and as the national spokesperson of the party.
While Kikon refused to divulge the reasons for leaving the BJP, party sources stated that he had become disillusioned by the lack of space for constructive discussions and the party’s hardliner stance on Christian minorities and their mistreatment in the country.
Recent frictions regarding the eviction drive in areas under contest between the BJP-led Assam and Nagaland government could also have led to the resignation, party sources claimed. Kikon was first elected to the Nagaland assembly from Bhandari constituency in 2013 and was re-elected in 2018. A former cabinet minister in the Nagaland government between 2013 and 2018, he look after Geology and Mining, Border Affairs departments etc.
During his second term, Kikon served as Advisor to the Nagaland government on Information Technology and Communication, New & Renewable Energy, Science & Technology.
In 2018, he was appointed Chief Whip of the BJP Legislature Party in the Nagaland Assembly. Kikon was also featured among the Top 50 MLAs in India in a survey conducted by the magazine ‘Fame India’.
An alumnus of Delhi University’s English Department from where he got his Master’ degree, Kikon is also a poet and author.
He lost the 2023 Assembly election to Achumbemo Kikon of the NPF.