Mizoram gets new govt after years of MNF, Congress rule

India's Mizoram today witnessed an important political transformation when a nascent political party formed by a retired police officer swept to power defeating an established regional outfit in the assembly elections.

The Zoram People's Movement (ZPM), a party founded by Lalduhoma, a former Indian Police Service officer and a former MP, shot to majority by bagging 27 seats in the 40-member legislature, leaving ruling Mizo National Front, led by chief minister Zoramthanga, a distant second which got just ten seats.

Since Mizoram became a separate state in 1987 after years of insurgency, it has been ruled by either MNF or Congress, reports our New Delhi correspondent.

However, the bipolar political landscape of the state was disrupted by the emergence of a ZPM which upended many calculations in a key civic body election earlier this year.

The Zoram People's Movement was formed as a coalition of six regional parties: Mizoram People's Conference, Zoram Nationalist Party, Zoram Exodus Movement, Zoram Decentralisation Front, Zoram Reformation Front, and Mizoram People's Party.

These parties later amalgamated into a unified entity, officially forming the Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) in 2018.

However, the largest founding party, Mizoram People's Conference, exited the alliance in 2019 when ZPM transitioned into a political party.

In the 2018 Mizoram legislative assembly polls, ZPM made its electoral debut, positioning itself as a political alternative to MNF and Congress.

Back then, MNF returned to power in Mizoram after a decade, defeating Congress in its last bastion in the northeast.