The opposition BJP lacks knowledge of Mizo culture and there is a clash of tradition with the local people in its first serious attempt to enter the state Assembly, former Mizoram chief secretary and Mizo Peace Accord signatory Lalkhama said Wednesday.
After casting his vote at Zarkawt-II polling station here, the former bureaucrat expressed fears on the possibility of horse-trading post results as "too many" Independent candidates are contesting this time.
The Mizo Peace Accord was signed on June 30, 1986 by Mizo National Front chief Laldenga, the then Union home secretary RD Pradhan and Lalkhama, who was the Mizoram chief secretary then, after 20 years of violence and disturbance in the state.
"BJP lacks knowledge about the Mizo culture. When they talk about Indian nationhood, they talk about culture, tradition and customs. Mizo people think that they are not in that group of culture," Lalkhama told PTI in an interview here.
The 87-year old, who was actively involved in the creation of the state of Mizoram, added that local people look at the BJP with apprehension due to a "clash of tradition".
"People were also apprehensive of the possibility of use of money power by the BJP, but no such proof has been found yet. The BJP is contesting on a serious note for the first time. This fact makes the present election a bit different from the earlier ones," Lalkhama said.
He also said the advent of the BJP into the picture and the possibility of money power coming into play have made it difficult to predict the outcome of this election.
More From This Section
"There is an apprehension that money power will play its game after the results are out. This time too many Independent candidates are fighting the elections. It never happened earlier. If they win, that will create the possibility of horse-trading," the veteran citizen said.
On February 20, 1987, Lalkhama had read out the proclamation of statehood at a public meeting organised at Aizawl's Parade Ground in the presence of the then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.
The ruling Congress and the MNF have fielded 40 candidates each this time, while the BJP is looking to open its account in the state for the first time by contesting in 39 seats.
The ZPM and the Zoram Thar have put up 38 and 23 candidates respectively, but these two parties have not registered themselves with the Election Commission, thereby making their contestants Independents.
Besides, two other Independents are in the fray, which takes the total number of Independent candidates contesting this year's Mizoram Assembly elections to 63.
The Congress has been in power in Mizoram since 2008 and is eyeing a third consecutive term. In the 2013 Assembly elections, the Congress had won 34 seats, while the MNF had five and the Mizoram People's Conference bagged one.
The Congress and the MNF left no stones unturned to woo voters, while the BJP launched a spirited campaign in this strategically important northeastern state, sandwiched between Myanmar and Bangladesh, with party national president Amit Shah declaring that Christmas will be celebrated in Mizoram under the BJP rule this December.
Mizoram is being seen by the BJP leaders as the "final frontier" in its 'Congress-free North East' campaign as the party has already secured power in Assam, Tripura, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh, besides joining the ruling coalitions in Meghalaya and Nagaland.