Nothing about Lalduhoma, 74, can be predicted, it seems. He became an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer in 1977 and rose to supervise the security of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, only to quit later. 

He became a Member of Parliament of Lok Sabha as a Congress candidate from Mizoram in 1984, only to be disqualified in 1988. He later became an independent MLA in the Mizoram assembly in 2018, only to lose his membership in 2020, but returned to the House in a by-election as a Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) legislator.  

Humble beginnings

Behind these life-defining events is a man with a mind of his own. His humble beginnings, being the youngest of four siblings to a farmer, was not a constraint.   

Lalduhoma was sworn in as the 13th Chief Minister on Friday, culminating his decades-long political essay that in fact was seeded at the time of his appointment as a principal assistant to Mizoram’s first Chief Minister, CH Chhunga around 1972. Lalduhoma was barely an undergrad student then.  

Decisive mandate

ZPM under Lalduhoma got a decisive mandate for a “Better Mizoram”, winning 27 of 40 assembly constituencies to break the political monopoly of the ousted Mizo National Front (MNF) which managed 10 and Congress, reduced to a lone seat. Both took turns to rule the North-eastern State. The BJP put up its best performance and bagged two seats in the polls.  

Lalduhoma, say political observers, had quit the police force, taking the advice of former PM Indira Gandhi, to convince the MNF insurgent leaders to give up their resistance that began in 1966 and join the peace accord to end the insurgency. He is said to have been instrumental in the historic peace deal signed in 1986 bringing normalcy to the State.  

Subsequently, it resulted in the rule of MNF, which had become a political entity by then, with Laldenga, known as Father of Mizo Nation by his followers, occupying the power in the Christian-dominated State. His successor, Zoramthanga, later ruled the State but for the in-between President’s Rule and a Congress stint under its CM, Lalthanhawla.  

In these almost 37 years, said newly-elected ZMP MLA, TBC Lalvenchhunga, from Aizwal West 1, people were fed up with corruption, nepotism, and financial and administrative misgovernance that took a toll on people’s lives and public infrastructure. “This upped the civil society, and small regional parties, and our leader Lalduhoma, forming ZPM, and taking the lead to galvanise people’s feeling for the larger good,” the MLA told businessline.   

Lalduhoma, along with at least six others, first contested as independent candidates and won the 2018 assembly polls from two seats since ZPM by that time had not got the Election Commission of India’s registration of a political party.  

Lalduhoma was disqualified as an MLA in 2020 because he joined the ZPM he had floated but he again won the Serchhip seat in the by-elections. This time too, he retained his seat on a promise of different politics.  To set an example, ZPM has decided that each of its ministers and MLAs would lead an austere life, for instance; have one official car each and reduced personal staff, which would also mitigate pressure on the public exchequer, states Lalvenchhunga.   

Born on February 22, 1949, in Tualpui of Mizoram, Lalduhoma may have helped bring democracy to defeat secessionism in the State. But, the challenge this time is no less — to let the democratic polity work for the people in the State which is now saddled with empty coffers. 

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