The Mara Autonomous District Council (MADC) in Mizoram just had its Village Council (VC) elections on April 18, 2023, and the results are in. The BJP, which is currently one of the ruling parties in MADC, swept the polls with a whopping 41 VCs out of 99.
The Mizo National Front (MNF), which is the ruling party in the state government, came second with 25 VCs. The Indian National Congress (INC) got eight VCs, the Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) got two VCs and an independent candidate got one VC. 22 VCs had no majority.
The BJP also dominated the seat-wise results, winning 232 out of 492 seats. The MNF got 155 seats, the INC got 78 seats, the ZPM got 13 seats and independents got nine seats.
So what does this mean for MADC and Mizoram?
Well, it means that the BJP has a strong hold on the local governance and development of the Mara region, which is one of the three autonomous district councils in Mizoram. It also means that the MNF has some work to do to catch up with the BJP in terms of popularity and performance in the region. And it means that the INC and the ZPM have a long way to go to make an impact on the region's politics.
The VC polls are seen as indicators of voting patterns in the coming State election later this year. The BJP will be hoping to gain ground at least in the MADC areas, while the MNF will be looking to challenge every single party as recent Local Council and Village Council polls had not been going in their favour. The INC and the ZPM will be hoping to improve their performance in the southern region and potentially topple the ruling government in the state election.
The VC polls also reflect the changing political landscape of Mizoram, which has traditionally been a Congress and MNF stronghold. The BJP has made difficult inroads into the state in recent years, winning its first seat in the state assembly in 2018 and forming an alliance with the MNF. The MNF, which is part of the BJP-led North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), has also emerged as a major force in state politics, ousting the Congress from power in 2018. The ZPM, which is a new regional party, has also made its presence felt especially in the urban areas and scripted history in the recently concluded Lunglei Municipal Council Election where it won all seats.
The VC polls show that Mizoram is a dynamic and diverse state with multiple political parties vying for power and influence. It will be interesting to see how the MADC general elections and the state assembly elections in 2023 will shape up and what surprises they will bring.
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