• The Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) leader Lalduhoma was sworn in as the ninth Chief Minister of Mizoram on December 8.

• Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati administered the oath of office and secrecy to Lalduhoma.

• Along with him, 11 others also took oath as ministers at a function held at the Raj Bhavan in state capital Aizawl. Seven of them were sworn in as cabinet ministers and four as ministers of state.

• ZPM emerged victorious in the Assembly polls bagging 27 of the total 40 seats. The ZPM dethroned the incumbent Mizo National Front (MNF) which got only 10 seats.

• Polling for the 40-member Assembly polls was held on November 7, where more than 82 per cent of over 8.57 lakh voters exercised their franchise.

• Mizoram elected its first Legislative Assembly in 1972 when it was a Union Territory.

From an IPS officer to becoming the CM

• From earning the dubious distinction of the first MP to be disqualified under the anti-defection law to becoming the Chief Minister of Mizoram, 73-year-old Lalduhoma’s political journey has been all about battling against odds.

• Lalduhoma, an ex-IPS officer, served as the in-charge of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s security. 

• The Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) was registered as a political party only in 2019.

• For over three decades, chief ministership in the northeastern state has been a see-saw affair between two senior politicians — Lal Thanhawla of the Congress and MNF’s Zoramthanga. 

• Lalduhoma first contested the Mizoram Assembly polls on a Congress ticket in 1984, but lost to People’s Conference party nominee Lalhmingthanga.

• The same year, he contested the Lok Sabha polls as a Congress candidate and was elected unopposed.

• The ZPM leader resigned as state Congress president and withdrew his primary membership from the party in 1986, after he was accused of conspiring against then Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla and some cabinet ministers.

• Lalduhoma became the first MP to be disqualified under the anti-defection law after he quit the Congress in 1988.

• He was also disqualified by Mizoram Assembly Speaker Lalrinliana Sailo in 2020, after 12 Mizo National Front (MNF) legislators filed complaints, alleging he defected to the ZPM by actively participating in party activities, though being elected as an independent in the 2018 polls.

• Lalduhoma was the first legislator to have been disqualified under the anti-defection law in Mizoram, but he managed to win the by-election to the Serchhip seat in 2021. 

• Besides the Congress, he was once part of the MNF. He had floated his own party, the Zoram Nationalist Party, and was also instrumental in the formation of the ZPM. 

• In the 2018 assembly polls, Lalduhoma won two seats — Serchhip and Aizawl West-I. He defeated incumbent legislator and five-time CM Lal Thanhawla from Serchhip by a margin of 410 votes. Lalduhoma subsequently vacated the Aizawl West-I seat to retain Serchhip. 

• Prior to the 2018 elections, Lalduhoma had successfully contested polls as a ZNP candidate from the Ratu seat in 2003 and Aizawl West-I seat in 2008.

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