DIMAPUR:
S Phangnon Konyak of BJP scripted history in Nagaland politics by becoming the first woman to be elected to the Rajya Sabha from the state on March 21.
She won the lone Rajya Sabha seat in the state unopposed after the Naga People’s Front (NPF) nominee did not file his nominations on the last day of filing papers today.
While the central BJP officially declared the Nagaland BJP Mahila Morcha president Konyak as the party’s official candidate for the seat on March 18, the NPF decided to put up one of its vice presidents Thenucho Tunyi against her on March 19.
Besides the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party and two Independents, the BJP and the NPF are alliance partners of the opposition-less United Democratic Alliance government in the state.
Accompanied by Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio, state BJP president Temjen Imna Along, Konyak filed her nominations in the morning but the NPF nominee failed to file his papers.
The election for the Upper House seat was scheduled for March 3. The seat will fall vacant as the incumbent member KG Kenye completes his term on April 2.
Meanwhile, NPF president Shürhozelie Liezietsu clarified that his party could not fulfill the required criteria to file the nomination of its candidate which requires 10 MLAs to nominate him as per Part X, Misc. Sec. 152 of the Representation of the People’s Act 1951 till the last hour.
“Even as president, I am not in a position to speak for others how and why this could not be fulfilled,” Liezietsu said in a communiqué late in the evening.
“I am constrained to say ‘sorry’ to the people of Nagaland for no fault of mine,” he added.
Liezietsu said Tunyi, the working president of NPF, came forward to stand as NPF candidate and his papers were accepted considering him to be the right candidate to fill the lone seat to represent Nagaland in Rajya Sabha.
He appreciated Tunyi’s determination and the legal cell and central office bearers of the party who took the trouble and arranged everything in order in time even to the extent of signing the party ticket.