Mizoram CM refutes whispers of ZPM-NDA alliance

Mizoram Chief Minister and Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) leader Lalduhoma on Wednesday ruled out a formal alliance with the BJP-led NDA at the Centre and said that joining that coalition is not, and has never been, on the party’s agenda. The statement from Lalduhoma came after claims of ruling ZPM formally joining the NDA alliance.

Speaking at a press conference, Lalduhoma said the party values cordial relations with the Centre but sees no immediate need for a formal alliance with the NDA, and affirmed that the ZPM remains committed to its identity as a regional political force with a national outlook.

Lalduhoma revealed that national leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, have repeatedly invited the party to join the alliance, but the ZPM has preferred to maintain a cooperative relationship without formal affiliation.

“Even now, right from the first day we met after forming the government, the Prime Minister and the Home Minister have constantly invited us to join them. However, we usually part on good terms by saying — Let us maintain a good working relationship; we are practically on your side. So, is it really necessary for us to officially align right now?” the chief minister said.

“We have not joined the NDA. While other parties have, we choose a different path. We want to maintain a very good relationship with the Centre, but an official alignment is not on our table,” Lalduhoma added.

He said that the issue of joining NDA has never been tabled in any meeting of the party’s Political Affairs Committee (PAC).  

Lalduhoma argued that Mizoram has historically benefited from a political culture in which regional parties worked closely with whichever party was in power at the Centre. Recalling the days of the Mizo Union party when Mizoram was part of Assam and then a Union Territory, the CM said that local leaders often aligned themselves with ruling parties in Assam and New Delhi to secure benefits for the state.

He also alleged that the entry of national parties into Mizoram altered the state’s political dynamic, which reduced the flexibility regional parties once enjoyed in maintaining constructive ties with successive governments at the Centre.

Lalduhoma said that former chief minister Brig T Sailo’s vision of a “regional party with a national outlook” remained the guiding principle of the ZPM too.

On the recent alliance between the ZPM and the BJP in the Chakma Autonomous District Council (CADC), Lalduhoma said that the arrangement was driven by political necessity rather than ideology.

He pointed out that no single group possessed the numbers required to form an executive council independently, making cooperation unavoidable.

Lalduhoma said that it was a local arrangement, which was approved by the party headquarters.

On Tuesday, the ZPM and BJP had formally forged an alliance and formed the Chakma Democratic Alliance Legislature Party, headed by Nirupam Chakma of the saffron party, to stake a claim to form an executive body in the CADC.

At present, the BJP has 10 members and the ZPM 9 in the CADC. The council was placed under a Governor’s rule for the second consecutive time in January this year due to constant political instability. The Governor’s rule is scheduled to end by early July.