Pu Lalduhoma, who was the former security in-charge of Indira Gandhi, is now fighting the Assembly elections of Mizoram against the Congress party candidate and ruling CM Lal Thanhawla. Reports say that his party may topple Congress from the state in this election. He is the chief ministerial candidate from Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) party.
Lalduhoma, a former IPS officer, told that ZPM’s main target is to end the Congress’s rule. Lalduhoma first won the 1984 Lok Sabha election uncontested on the Congress’s ticket but left the party soon after he had a dispute with his former colleague Lal Thanhawla.
Being impressed by his work in Assam the Union Home Ministry had transferred him to Delhi as the security in-charge of Indira Gandhi. Mrs. Gandhi was also impressed by his organizational skills, which paved the way for his entry into politics. The former IPS officer had a three-decade-long and interesting political journey till now. “Indira Gandhi requested me to join Congress. So I left IPS and joined her party in 1984. I became Congress head in Mizoram and MP in 1984. Then I went to London, brought Laldenga (Rebel leader and founder of Mizo National Front) to Delhi for peace negotiations. I quit Congress because of the obstructions to the peace process,” Lalduhoma said.
After leaving the Congress party he formed the Mizo National Union which was later merged with Mizoram People’s Conference. Afterward, he joined the Mizo National Front but soon broke away and formed the Zoram Nationalist Party which he leads now.
Lalduhoma played a major role in signing the Mizo Peace Accord in 1986, under the Rajiv Gandhi government, which was aimed at maintaining the peace in the state. There was an armed movement after a famine broke out in the state during the ’60s. The movement had started because of “Bamboo flowering” which resulted in abrupt growth of rodents whereby food stocks were exhausted. The movement was lead by Mizo National Front leader Laldenga. Rajiv Gandhi government finally signed a peace accord to control the movement. “There was a bottleneck in the peace negotiations because Lal Thanhawla, who was also chief minister then, was not willing to resign. The government was not functioning and there was a huge demand for his resignation,” said Lalduhoma.
Political pundits are speculating that people will vote in favor of ZPM because of anti-incumbency against a decade-long rule of the Congress. Lalduhoma is confident that his party will win the election and ZPM is going to form the government by itself as Mizo people are backing them in the elections. Lalduhoma said, “We will have a greater say in government formation. At present all indications are we will have a majority. But if it is a hung house, ZPM will play a decisive role. Neither Congress nor MNF can form the government without our help”.
