 "Mizoram, map")
At a press conference on Saturday, former members of the Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) claimed that they had been deceived by the party leadership, according to a report by Eastmojo. They alleged that although they were warmly welcomed into the party on August 24 during a grand event, they had to leave due to unfulfilled promises.
The former ZPM members had been followers of KS Thanga, Mizoram's ex-agriculture minister under the Congress government. They said they had joined the party after thorough deliberation. However, ZPM failed to fulfil the promises it had made to them, forcing them to leave the party.
The former members stated that they had made it clear that they wanted to see their leader, KS Thanga, appointed as the party's vice president. They added that the ZPM leadership had agreed to this condition during their discussions.
Later, the ZPM leadership informed KS Thanga that he would not be given the post of vice president, a development that dismayed and alienated the former members.
Additionally, the former members said they had observed several internal conflicts within ZPM, which eroded their faith in the party's capabilities. The ZPM has yet to issue an official statement regarding the departure of these former members.
ZPM is the main opposition party in Mizoram, formed as an electoral alliance of six parties in 2017. The constituent parties in this alliance were the Zoram Nationalist Party (ZNP), Mizoram People's Conference (MPC), Zoram Exodus Movement (ZEM), Mizoram People's Party (MPP), Zoram Reformation Front (ZRF), and Zoram Democratic Front (ZDF). ZPM officially received registration from the Election Commission of India (ECI) in July 2019.
Assembly elections in the state are due to take place later this year. Currently, the ruling MNF has 28 legislators in the assembly, while the main opposition Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) has an unspecified number of legislators, Congress has five, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has one.
