Aizawl, Aug 6: Mizoram’s main opposition party, the MNF, on Thursday demanded that Chief Minister Lalduhoma issue a public apology and retract his recent remarks on the Inner Line Permit (ILP) and the Mizoram Peace Accord before August 15.
The Mizo National Front (MNF) also alleged that the CM’s statements misrepresented the Mizoram Peace Accord of 1986 and undermined the interests of the Mizo people.
The agreement, signed between the MNF and the Centre, had ended two decades of insurgency in this northeastern state. The Mizoram government was also a signatory.
Addressing a press conference here, MNF president Zoramthanga alleged that Lalduhoma’s statement contained factual inaccuracies on issues concerning Mizoram’s security and the Mizo identity, and accused him of attempting to mislead the younger generation.
During his address at Mizoram Law College on July 31, the CM had allegedly said that the continuation of the ILP ultimately rests with the Centre, which has the authority to revoke the system if it chooses.
The ILP is an official travel document issued to Indian citizens for entry into a few states, including Mizoram. It has been in force since 1875, and its continuation to safeguard indigenous tribal communities was formally protected under the Mizo Accord of 1986.
Demands are being made from several quarters to strictly enforce the IPL norms in view of the potential influx after the inauguration of the new Bairabi-Sairang railway line in September last year, which connects Aizawl to the national network.
Cautioning that the permit system should be enforced with “reasonable restraint,” the chief minister had allegedly said that if it is implemented unreasonably, it can be challenged in court, and the court may even strike it down.
The chief minister had also allegedly stated that the commonly used term “Mizoram Accord” is technically inaccurate, arguing that the 1986 peace agreement was signed between the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and “one political organisation” (MNF) in Mizoram rather than between the Government of India and the state of Mizoram.
Zoramthanga said that Lalduhoma should apologise to the people of Mizoram and retract the remarks before Independence Day, warning that the party would take “appropriate action” if the demand was ignored.
“The MNF will continue to safeguard the Peace Accord and oppose any move that weakens or distorts it,” the former CM said.
He also criticised Lalduhoma’s repeated assertion that the Centre can revoke the Inner Line Permit (ILP) at its discretion, and described the statement as “irresponsible and harmful” to public confidence on an issue central to Mizoram’s constitutional safeguards.
The former rebel leader-turned-politician further alleged that the chief minister had incorrectly described the 1986 Peace Accord as a “Memorandum of Agreement” and a “Memorandum of Understanding” during his address to law students, instead of its official title, the Memorandum of Settlement.
He also claimed that Lalduhoma failed to correctly identify the then Mizoram Chief Secretary, Lalkhama, who signed the accord on behalf of the Mizoram government, despite portraying himself as well-versed in the peace negotiations.
“Mistakes made out of ignorance can be understood, but knowingly presenting incorrect facts is unbecoming of the state’s highest elected leader,” Zoramthanga said.
Former deputy chief minister Tawnluia, who accompanied Zoramthanga, said that the MNF would continue to defend the integrity of the Peace Accord whenever its significance was diminished.
Tawnluia stressed that the accord was signed by the Government of India, the Government of Mizoram and the MNF, and not merely between the Union Home Ministry and the MNF, as the CM had claimed.(PTI)
