Reang refugees demand for polling stations in their camps

Reang refugees demand for polling stations in their camps to cast their votes for the Mizoram Assembly Polls.

Among the refugees, over 11,000 immigrants are eligible to vote in next month’s elections to constitute a new Assembly in the Congress-ruled Mizoram state.

“Though the names of over 11,000 refugees are enrolled in the electoral lists of Mizoram, but there are over 5,000 more people among the inmates who have the eligibility to become voters due to the negligence of the Mizoram administrations, said refugee leader Bruno Mshe.

Mshe, who is the General Secretary of the refugees’ apex body Mizoram Bru Displaced People’s Forum (MBDPF), said that the Election Commission and the Mizoram Election Department were yet to respond to their demand for setting up the polling stations, but they are optimistic that ECI would set up polling stations in Reang refugee camps.

However, the election fever of neighbouring Mizoram state has already gripped the Kanchanpur subdivision as inmate of Reang refugee camps sheltered in six camps in the subdivision are decisive factors for three seats among 40 assembly seats of Mizoram.

To attract the voters of Reang refugee camps, representatives and leaders including candidates of all political parties of Mizoram are now campaigning in the sheltered camps of Kanchanpur and Damncherra.

Earlier, leaders of BJP like state’s general secretary Pratima Bhowmik, MLA Dr Dilip Das and other state leaders had already campaigned these camps and tried to woo the voters in their party fold.

Over 35,000 Reang tribal refugees, comprising 5,907 families, fled from Mizoram and have been staying in Tripura’s Kanchanpur and Panisagar sub-divisions since October 1997 following ethnic tension after a Mizo forest official was killed in the neighbouring state.

Among the refugees, only a little over 11,000 immigrants are eligible to vote in next month’s elections to constitute a new Assembly in the Congress-ruled Mizoram.

“Though the names of little over 11,000 refugees are enrolled in the electoral lists of Mizoram, but there are over 5,000 more people among the immigrants who have the eligibility to become voters but due to the negligence of the Mizoram administrations, their names are yet to be enrolled in the electoral lists,” refugee leader Bruno Msha told IANS over phone from Kanchanpur.

Msha, who is the General Secretary of the refugees’ apex body Mizoram Bru Displaced People’s Forum (MBDPF), said that the Election Commission and the Mizoram Election Department were yet to respond to their demand for setting up the polling stations.