Row in Mizoram after ZPM’s V Zirsanga appointed LADC chief despite conviction

AIZAWL: A controversy has erupted in Mizoram after the ruling Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) appointed V Zirsanga as the chief executive member (CEM) of the Lai Autonomous District Council (LADC), despite his conviction in a corruption case last year.

According to a Mizoram government order, Zirsanga was appointed as CEM of the autonomous council on February 24 and directed to secure a vote of confidence within 30 days.

On January 19, 2024, a special court convicted Zirsanga along with three others for criminal breach of trust, cheating and corruption for misappropriating ₹1.33 crore when he was the executive member of the LADC in charge of education (middle school). The court sentenced him to four years in jail and imposed a fine of ₹4 lakh. However, he was granted bail by the high court.

Zirsanga’s appointment comes shortly after the collapse of the MNF-Congress coalition executive committee in LADC on February 12, when the incumbent CEM, C. Lalmuanthanga, resigned from his post before a floor test.

The Congress opposed the government decision, saying it amounted to promoting corruption.

“Only a year ago, the youth wing of ZPM vehemently attacked V Zirsanga, who, then had formed the LADC government under the Mizo National Front (MNF) banner, calling him unfit for the CEM’s post due to his conviction,” Mizoram Congress president Lal Thanzara SAID.

“The approval of V Zirsanga’s appointment as CEM is a blatant disregard for democratic ethics and ZPM’s clear endorsement of corruption,” the Mizoram Congress unit said in a statement.

H Vanlalhlua, ZPM general secretary in charge of District Council Affairs, defended the party’s decision. He said the people of Lai ADC still have complete faith in V Zirsanga, and the charges leveled at him by the Congress are a result of political enmity.

“A certain court has given a judgment, but it is not final. Our leader has appealed to a higher court, and until a new judgment is made, it is not right to say he is unworthy of holding public office, ” Vanlalhlua said, adding that the majority of elected members of LADC supported him as their leader and the head of the council while MNF and the Congress failed to form a stable government.