Mizoram sets example of violence free poll campaign

Aizwal, Nov 23: With no incident of violence being reported for the November 25 Assembly elections,

has set an example of peaceful election campaigning. "For the last several years, elections in Mizoram have always been more or less peaceful.

This year during campaign not a single incident of violence has been reported. It has been very peaceful," state DGP Amulya Patnaik said here. Patnaik said one of the main reasons behind the violence free poll campaign is the strict watch kept by the powerful Presbyterian Church controlled Mizoram People’s Forum which has listed the dos and don'ts for political parties.

"We don’t support any kind of violence. We have the MPF platform at state level, district level and at local level, which keeps a strict watch on any kind of wrong doings and any attempt to instigate violence," MPF President Rev Lalramlian Pachuau, said.

Chief Electoral Officer Ashwini Kumar agreed that the campaign since the day the model code of conduct was implemented, has been peaceful. "There has been no incident of violence as such. But yes, we have reports that there have been complaints of bribing," Kumar said.

Three decades ago, the scenario in Mizoram, which had a history of insurgency since the early sixties, was not the same. The elections till the late eighties were marred by violence and bloodshed. Mizoram became a peaceful state after the signing of the peace accord in late eighties, which brought an end to insurgency in the state, bordered by Bangladesh on one side and Myanmar on the other.

PTI