Mizoram was the last state the Congress lost in the Northeast and it could become the first state the party could win to stage a comeback in the region.
This is what senior Congress leader and MP Shashi Tharoor believes.
Tharoor said in Aizawl on Saturday, "Mizoram will be the first state to bring Congress back to power in the Northeast."
"The party is strong.. all the opportunists would have left by now and members and candidates left are loyal to the Congress party and its ideology," Tharoor said.
Mizoram goes to the polls on November 7.
"Mizoram has suffered under an inefficient government for five years. It is time for change, and it is important for the party in power to have people with experience govern the state."
"The Congress has experienced people who are qualified and will ensure the overall well-being of the state. We are focused on quality money made and spent in Mizoram," he said while flagging the reason why Mizoram should vote Congress back to power. It is also tried and tested by the people, he added.
The Congress lost power to ruling Mizo National Front (MNF) in 2018 after two straight terms. It could manage only five of the 40 seats to the MNF's 26.
A well-entrenched Congress lost power to the BJP or its allies in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur (twice at that), Meghalaya and Mizoram since the BJP stormed to power in Delhi in 2014.
Notwithstanding Tharoor's confidence, party insiders and political observers told The Telegraph that it is going to be an uphill task for Congress because of the emergence of the Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) which eaten into Congress' votes in 2018 and has mounted a strong challenge against the ruling MNF this time round.
"The Congress campaign certainly got a boost with the visit of Rahul Gandhi but it all boils down to the state leaders to take it forward. It remains to be seen how much they have taken it forward given reports of power tussle within the state unit," a political observer said.
Most believe if the Congress improves upon its numbers, it will be nothing sort of an achievement. Congress is contesting all 40 seats like the two leading contenders —MNF and the ZPM.
An improved performance and a good result in the other four poll-bound states could hold it in good stead in the 2024 general elections. Mizoram has one LS seat.
Power has swung between Congress and MNF since 1987 but the emergence of ZPM in 2018 has left the Congress struggling even though it has its backers.
He also took a dig at the ZPM.
"There is a new party on the horizon, but no one really knows who these people are and how they will govern. Who is behind them? Who is financing them? "
"A vote for ZPM will be a vote for BJP through the backdoor. In these times it is better to vote for a tried and tested party which knows you and understands your needs. A party which has no unknown shadows lurking in the back," Tharoor said.
Targetting the BJP for "pushing" the one-nation-one culture-one religion-one election, Tharoor said Congress has always believed in the diversity of India and "we need to remember that uniformity is not unity".
BJP is a minor player in Christian-majority Mizoram, having won only one seat in 2018 and focussing on minority tribal areas. There is widespread "pain and anguish" among the Mizo community over the suffering of the Kuki-Zo people in the ongoing Manipur unrest.
"We also need to remember that in a few months we will face the national elections. This election is about saving India's soul. The very Idea of India is under threat. The time to end politics of hatred is here," Tharoor said.
He said the BJP has "constantly" reneged on its promises and that corruption under BJP has "soared" which is easily visible in the Transparency index which is based on interviews with businessmen and taxpayers.
"The BJP has been using investigative agencies to their benefit," the Congress leader said.
