Daijiworld Media Network - Aizawl

Aizawl, Nov 15: Former cabinet minister R Lalthangliana has returned to the Mizoram Legislative Assembly after securing a notable victory in the Dampa bypoll on Friday. The senior Mizo National Front (MNF) leader defeated the ruling Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) candidate, gospel singer Vanlalsailova, by 562 votes, helping the MNF retain one of its only 10 seats won during the 2023 assembly election dominated by a sweeping ZPM wave.

For Lalthangliana, this marks his seventh term as legislator. He had lost his South Tuipui seat in 2023 to political debutante and former football star Jeje Lalpekhlua of the ZPM. Calling his win a reaffirmation of trust in political maturity, he said voters chose experience over unfulfilled promises.

“The ZPM made many commitments before the 2023 elections, but very few have been delivered. After two years, people are beginning to feel dissatisfied,” he told The Indian Express. “I travelled across the constituency repeatedly after my nomination. I have been an MLA since the 1980s and served as a cabinet minister for 15 years. People voted for experience and stability.”

The MNF views the victory as a morale booster ahead of two crucial polls — the Lai Autonomous District Council election next month and the Aizawl Municipal Corporation election early next year.

“We believe this reflects the wider public sentiment in Mizoram. After two years of the ZPM government, people’s views are becoming clearer. This result will directly influence the coming elections,” said MNF MLA Robert Romawia Royte.

The bypoll result leaves the power balance in the 40-member assembly unchanged: ZPM 27, MNF 10, BJP two, and Congress one. The ZPM, contesting its first election as a recognised party in 2023, had broken Mizoram’s decades-long trend of alternating governance between the MNF and Congress.

In the Dampa bypoll, ZPM secured second place, Congress finished third with former minister John Rotluangliana, and the BJP’s Lalhmingthanga came in fourth.