Mizoram election: The blazing big guns of MNF, Congress, ZPM and BJP

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Lalsawta, is aggressively trying to unseat Zoramthanga as it sees the heat from Manipur riots — which led to a large number of Kuki-Zo people who have the same ethnicity and Christian religion of the majority Mizo people, crossing over into Mizoram — singe Zoramthanga whose party, the MNF, is an ally of the BJP at the Centre. While the MNF and the Congress are vying for power, a new party, Zoram People's Movement (ZPM), led by a former cop, is being seen as a strong contender.

Zoramthanga
Zoramthanga was a militant leader who turned a politician in 1987 when Mizoram became a state after the then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi signed a peace accord with Mizo militant leader Laldenga.

While in college, Zoramthanga was drawn to the Mizo movement and rose through the ranks to become Laldenga's most trusted aide. After his mentor Laldenga’s death in 1990, he became president of the MNF, which had transformed from a militant outfit to a political party.

He has been elected to the state assembly six times and was chief minister for three terms (1998-2008 and 2018-2023). He is seeking re-election from his constituency Aizawl East-I for the record seventh time.

Zoramthanga's MNF is a part of the BJP-led North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) and an ally of the NDA at the Centre.

Besides anti-incumbency, the Manipur riots can pose another challenge to Zoramthanga's MNF since his main voter base is among the majority Christian population of Mizoram. But he has distanced himself from the BJP-led Central government, claiming to have refuted its orders to push back refugees from Myanmar and voting against it in the no-confidence motion brought by the I.N.D.I.

alliance recently in Parliament. He has also criticised the Hindutva agenda