ZPM Wins Mizoram: Know All About The State's New CM Face Lalduhoma

After registering a thumping victory, Lalduhoma, who played a major role in bringing the Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) to power, is set to become the CM.

The party emerged victorious in the Mizoram assembly polls, bagging 27 of the 40 seats. As Lalduhoma is set to become the new CM, let us find out more about him in 10 points:

Lalduhoma is an ex-IPS officer who served as the in-charge of former prime minister Indira Gandhi's security.

In this poll, Lalduhoma defeated his nearest MNF rival J Malsawmzuala Vanchhawng by 2,982 votes from the Serchhip seat.

He started his journey in politics when he contested from a Congress ticket in 1984. He lost to People's Conference party nominee Lalhmingthanga by a margin of 846 votes.

The same year, he contested the Lok Sabha polls as a Congress candidate and was elected unopposed. However, he resigned as state Congress president and withdrew his primary membership from the party in 1986, after he was accused of conspiring against then chief minister Lal Thanhawla and some cabinet ministers.

In 1988, Lalduhoma became the first MP to be disqualified under the anti-defection law after he quit the Congress.

In 2020, Mizoram Assembly Speaker Lalrinliana Sailo disqualified him based on complaints from 12 Mizo National Front (MNF) legislators. They accused him of defecting to the ZPM by actively engaging in party activities, despite being elected as an independent in the 2018 polls.

Lalduhoma was the first legislator to have been disqualified under the anti-defection law in Mizoram, but he managed to win the by-election to the Serchhip seat in 2021.

Besides the Congress, he was once part of the MNF. He had floated his own party, the Zoram Nationalist Party, and was also instrumental in the formation of the ZPM.

Lalduhoma won two seats - Serchhip and Aizawl West-I In the 2018 assembly polls. He had defeated incumbent legislator and five-time chief minister Lal Thanhawla from Serchhip by a margin of 410 votes. However, he vacated the Aizawl West-I seat to retain Serchhip. Prior to the 2018 elections, Lalduhoma had successfully contested polls as a ZNP candidate from the Ratu seat in 2003 and Aizawl West-I seat in 2008.

Well, Lalduhoma occupying the top post of the state brings a welcome change for the people of the northeastern state as they have witnessed a see-saw affair between two senior politicians - Lal Thanhawla of the Congress and MNF's Zoramthanga - in three decades.