Why Mizoram ex-Speaker resigned to join BJP: ‘We need bailout from Centre … NDA has big chance to win LS polls’

Excerpts:

What prompted your decision to join the BJP?

Considering the financial strain and crisis in Mizoram, we need help from the Centre — a bailout. I also think the BJP and the NDA have a big chance of winning the general election in 2024. This is why I joined the BJP.

So far, the BJP has not had a sizeable presence in Mizoram, which elected its first BJP MLA in 2018. Do you think this could change in this election?

Yes, the party will grow. Due to the Manipur crisis, there was a feeling that it would be difficult for the BJP in Mizoram. But things have changed now after people realised the situation regarding the ethnic clashes in Manipur. The party’s condition is improving day by day.

Speaking of the Manipur crisis, a couple of months back, the BJP’s Mizoram vice-president resigned, saying he believes the BJP government in Manipur and the Centre supported the “massive demolition of Christian churches” during the violence there. Won’t the crisis have a bearing on the BJP’s chances here in Mizoram?

As I said, there is now a realisation of the actual situation in Manipur. It is not a Hindu or BJP issue, it is an ethnic clash. People are understanding that aspect of the Manipur situation.

The only seat that the party currently holds is from a Chakma-majority area. Isn’t it difficult for the BJP, with its Hindutva ideology, to make inroads into Mizoram’s Christian-majority parts, which make up most of the state?

Yes, as of today, there is a misconception regarding the BJP and Hinduism in Mizoram. But, people are realising the role played by the NDA in the development of the rest of India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s performance is very good…[and] visits by ministers from Delhi to Mizoram are very important.

The BJP is the underdog in this coming Assembly election. How much of an impact can it have on the outcome?

No single party will be able to form the government, and without BJP MLAs, no party will form the government. So people, especially the youth, want and expect a developmental process. Without the support and help of the central government, we don’t have the funds or the financial condition for that. That’s why the youth are realising that the BJP has done a lot for the country. So, we have high hopes for the BJP in Mizoram.