Aizawl, Jun 28 (PTI) Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma on Friday said that he resigned as an IPS officer to broker peace between the Centre and the then-underground Mizo National Front (MNF).
Addressing the celebration of 'Remna Ni', a Mizo parlance for the anniversary of the signing of the historic peace accord, Lalduhoma said he resigned as an IPS officer in 1984 at the behest of former PM Indira Gandhi and ex-MNF president Laldenga.
He said he went to London to meet Laldenga after quitting his job and spent five days there to discuss the demands of the MNF.
"I resigned from the Indian Police Service at the request of then prime minister Indira Gandhi and Laldenga to bring peace in Mizoram. After I left my job, I also met Laldenga in London and discussed various demands of the MNF from the Indian (central) government," the chief minister said.
The 'Remna Ni' celebrations were organised by the state's apex students' body Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP) on Friday as June 30, when the pact was signed in 1986, is a Sunday this year.
Lalduhoma expressed gratitude to the MZP for their contributions to the peace pact.
He also thanked all party leaders, churches and then chief secretary Lalkhama, who was the signatory in the peace accord, for their invaluable efforts.
He called on all the Zo people living across the world to stay united.
He said the crises being faced by the Zo people in Manipur, Myanmar and Bangladesh are a blessing in disguise to unite the community.
Since 2018, the MZP has been organising statewide 'Remna Ni' celebrations to honour individuals and organisations that played a crucial role in the signing of the peace accord. This time, it felicitated four former legislators, who resigned in 1981 to advance the peace talks.
The Mizoram peace accord was signed between the Centre and the then underground MNF on June 30, 1986, ending two decades of insurgency.
The MNF was founded by Laldenga, who later also became the chief minister of Mizoram, to protest against the inaction of the Centre towards the famine in the Mizo areas of Assam state in the late '50s.
After a major uprising through peaceful means, the group took up arms and became involved in underground activities between 1966 and 1986. The MNF was outlawed by the government in 1967.
In May 1971, a delegation of the Mizo district council met then PM Gandhi and demanded that a state for the Mizo people be carved out of Assam. Responding to the demand, the Centre made the Mizo Hills a Union Territory in January 1972.
Mizoram became the 23rd state of India on February 20, 1987.
After the pact was signed, the MNF became a political party and has ruled the state for several terms. It is now the main opposition party in the state.