By TwoCircles.net Special Correspondent,
Aizwal: Finally the D Day has arrived in the north-eastern Indian state Mizoram for the polls with the campaigning drew to a close amid a hue and cry about armed gunmen being sighted in one of the sensitive constituencies, Chalfilh, which borders Manipur.
Though, the state has been known for its peaceful election campaigns for last several years due to the interference of Church. The voting takes place in the state on Monday for 40 seats which will be contested among 142 candidates. Total number of voters are 6.86 lakh including 3.49 lakh women.
With high profile campaigning including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, the ruling Congress made the New Land Use Policy its main poll agenda.
Congress has accused Zoram Nationalist Party (ZNP) for involving in activities with militant. ZNP, however, denied the allegation and held Congress responsible for this. ZNP leaders said that being in power Congress should have arrested the gunmen if there were any.
Meanwhile, the Mizroam Democratic Alliance (MDA) of the three Opposition parties —the Mizo National Front (MNF), the Mizoram People’s Conference (MPC) and the Maraland Democratic Front (MDF) — has promised the voters a special economic development programme in the state if they are voted to power.
Besides this, Mizoram has set an example of violence free campaigning, with no incident being reported for the 25 November Assembly elections. “For the last several years, elections in Mizoram have always been more or less peaceful. This year during campaign not a single incident of violence has been reported. It has been very peaceful,” said state DGP Amulya Patnaik in Aizawl.
One of the main reasons behind the violence free poll campaign is the strict watch kept by the powerful Presbyterian Church controlled Mizoram People’s Forum (MPF). “We don’t support any kind of violence. We have the MPF platform at state level, district level and at local level, which keeps a strict watch on any kind of wrong doings and any attempt to instigate violence,” MPF president Rev Lalramlian Pachuau, said.
However, even three decades ago, the scenario in Mizoram, which had a history of insurgency since the early sixties, was not the same. Violence and bloodshed was a common sight during elections.
Mizoram started become a peaceful state after the signing of the peace accord late eighties, which brought an end to insurgency in the state, bordered by Bangladesh on one side and Myanmar on the other.