MNF will return to power in 2028 to protect Mizos and Mizoram: Zoramthanga

Mizo National Front (MNF) president and former Chief Minister Zoramthanga on October 6 declared that his party will return to power in the 2028 Mizoram Assembly elections to “protect the Mizos and Mizoram,” while sharply criticising the ruling Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) government over its decision to adopt the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Act (FCAA), 2023.

Speaking at a function at the MNF office in Aizawl, Zoramthanga accused the ZPM government of compromising the land rights of indigenous people by endorsing the controversial forest law. He said the MNF “strongly opposes” the extension of the Act to Mizoram and vowed to continue resisting it.

“The FCAA allows the central government to undertake strategic linear projects within a 100-kilometre area along international borders without requiring forest clearance. This poses a grave threat to the ancestral lands of the Mizos,” Zoramthanga said.

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He recalled that the Mizoram Assembly under his previous MNF-led government had passed a resolution opposing the implementation of the FCAA, in contrast to the ZPM’s decision to support it. “MNF will come back to power to protect the Mizo community, and we will oppose the FCAA till the end,” he asserted.

Zoramthanga further alleged that the law infringes upon Article 371G of the Constitution, which guarantees special protection to Mizoram, stating that no Act of Parliament relating to land ownership and transfer shall apply to the state unless ratified by its Assembly.

The Mizoram Assembly, led by Chief Minister Lalduhoma, had on August 27 adopted a resolution to implement the FCAA following a motion introduced by Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Lalthansanga. The move has since triggered widespread outrage among opposition parties, student unions, and civil society organisations, who have demanded its withdrawal, citing threats to the autonomy and land rights of indigenous communities.