BJP asks Tripura unit to woo Chakma, Bru voters in Mizoram

The BJP has entrusted its Tripura unit with the responsibility of wooing Chakma and Bru voters in five Assembly constituencies of Mizoram, dominated by people belonging to the two ethnic communities, a senior party leader said.

The five Mizoram Assembly constituencies have been identified as West Tuipui, Mamit, Tuichawng, Hachhek and Thorang, vice-president of BJP's Tripura unit, Pratima Bhowmick, said on Friday.

Elections to the 40-member Mizoram Assembly are scheduled for November 28.

"We have been given the responsibility of the overall campaign in the five constituencies where the maximum voters are from Chakma and Bru communities. We are hopeful of winning all the five seats," Bhowmick told PTI.

Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb, Social Welfare Minister Santana Chakma, state BJP vice-president Pratima Bhowmick and MLAs Sambhu Lal Chakma and Promod Reang on Tuesday began their campaign in Mizoram for the Assembly elections.

Biplab Kumar Deb, Santana Chakma and Sambhu Lal Chakma addressed a poll rally at Kamalanagar, the headquarter of the Chakma Autonomus District Council.

The Tripura chief minister has been given special responsibility to campaign for the Mizoram elections, Bhowmick said.

"We conducted the first round of campaign at Kamalanagar and other constituencies and received overwhelming response from voters there. People of the Chakma community gathered in large numbers at the helipad to receive us.

"We found Santana Chakma and our chief minister to be very popular among them," Bhowmick said.

Bhowmick, along with MLA Dilip Das on Friday left for refugee camps in North Tripura district, where at least 35,000 Bru inmates are sheltered.

"We will campaign among the Bru inmates there, because they are voters in Mizoram.

Many refugee leaders are now campaigning for us in Bru compact areas in the state," she told PTI before leaving for the refugee camps.

Bhowmick said 96 per cent of the population in the Chakma district council area in Mizoram are from the Chakma community.

About 50 per cent voters in Mamit are from the Bru community and 5 per cent from the Chakma community.

In Hachhek constituency, the Brus constitute 68 per cent of the total voters, in Thorang constituency Chakmas constitute 30 per cent and Brus represent 27 per cent and in West Tuipui, the Chakmas constitute 80 per cent of the voters, Bhowmick said.

Ninety-eight per cent of the voters in Tuichawng seat belong to the Chakma community, she said.

BJP spokesperson Subrata Chakraborty said, chief ministers of many northeastern states will campaign for the Mizoram Assembly elections, including Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal.

BJP president Amit Shah had visited Aizawl on October 17 to kick off the partys election campaign.