Mizoram: Fmr MNF leader Lalrinliana Sailo joins BJP, says party will win 5-8 seats, up from 1 in 2018

Lalrinliana Sailo, who resigned as Mizoram legislative assembly speaker and MNF legislator on Wednesday, joined BJP today and said that though the party might not be able to form the next government on its own, it will definitely be in the government in the state. He said that BJP will improve on its seats tally this time and win 5 to 8 seats, up from the one seat the party had won in the 2018 elections.

“The BJP, which managed to open an account in the state assembly polls in 2018 by having one candidate elected, will now have at least 5 to 8 MLAs in the coming polls to the 40-member state assembly”, he said.

Addressing the saffron party workers at Atal Bhavan, the BJP headquarters in Aizawl on Thursday afternoon, Sailo said that the BJP will play a key role and be the main deciding factor in the government formation post the elections on November 7.

“The state finance is in an extremely bad shape heading for a serious crisis,” the former speaker said, adding that Mizoram needs strong financial assistance and bail-out by the central government. “The NDA is going to rule the country for a long time. I joined the BJP for the love of the state and the people,” he said.

He accused the MNF of being against the saffron party in the state politics but extremely close to the NDA at the centre. He also alleged that central schemes are poorly implemented in the state.

Lalrinliana Sailo has been elected to the State Assembly four times, three times on Congress ticket and once on MNF ticket. He won the Tuichang (formerly Khawzawl) seat thrice – 2003, 2008 and 2013.

When Congress returned to power in 2008, he was appointed minister but was later removed from the ministerial position during the second Congress term in 2013. He joined the Mizo National Front (MNF) a few months before the 2018 elections and successfully secured the Chalfilh seat.

His clash with the MNF leadership began after his speech in the United States where he expressed his desire to join the BJP.

Also Read : Mizoram Polls 2023: After MNF, ZPM, BJP and Cong, MKHC too appeals for change in counting date