Election Commission derecognises People's Conference as state party in Mizoram

Aizawl, 12 April (TNN) :  Election Commission (EC) of India on Monday revoked its recognition of the Mizoram People's Conference (MPC), which has now been rechristened as the People's Conference (PC). The action on MPC was taken on the ground that the party has not contested any elections in the state after 2014.

Along with the MPC, the state party status granted to RLD in Uttar Pradesh, BRS in Andhra Pradesh, PDA in Manipur, PMK in Puducherry and RSP in West Bengal was also revoked. They will remain as registered unrecognised political parties (RUPP).

Formed by retired Army Brigadier Thenphunga Sailo as People's Conference in 1975, the MPC formed the government in Mizoram (then a Union Territory) in 1978 with the party founder as the chief minister, only to be toppled the following year. However, in the mid-term poll in 1979, the PC party won the mandate of the people and was in power till 1984.

Later, the party merged with the erstwhile Mizo National Union (MNU) led by former Lok Sabha member Lalduhoma and formed another party christened the Democratic Party (DP), but they parted ways and the two parties joined the Janata Dal (JD) separately.

The central committee of the JD accepted the faction led by Brig T Sailo but rejected the state unit's decision to forge a pre-poll alliance with Congress, resulting in the party being rechristened as the Mizoram Janata Dal (MJD).