Mizoram assembly elections: Displaced Bru voters travel 60km to cast votes in homeland

GUWAHATI: At 3am on Wednesday, the primary bus with Bru citizens on board left the Kanchanpur refugee camp in Tripura. The bus was once certain for Kanhmun, a village on the inter-state border located in Mizoram’s Mamit district, where the Bru tribals, displaced from their home state for 21 years, had been to solid their vote.


The bus, that reached Kanhmun at 6.30am, was once considered one of 433 vehicles supplied through the Tripura govt to transport the Bru citizens to their polling stations. Thousands of Brus, together with mom wearing small children, travelled up to 60 km to workout their franchise.

“This is the second one time we now have set foot in our home state to solid our votes,” Bruno Msha, basic secretary of the Mizoram Bru Displaced People’s Forum, informed TOI. For the past month, Msha has been at the forefront of the Brus’ campaign difficult that they be allowed to vote from their refugee camps. But that was once not to be.

Ever since they had been displaced, the Brus have generally voted via postal ballots from their six refugee camps in Tripura — the 2008 meeting election, the 2009 Lok Sabha election, the 2013 meeting and the 2014 Lok Sabha election.

“In 2003, the EC had set up polling stations at Kanhmun and Tuipuibari, but very few grew to become up. Later, they made up our minds to convey ballot boxes to our camps. Consequently, the turnout was once prime,” Msha stated. “This time, as a result of the drive from Mizo society, the EC had no option but dangle the polling in Kanhmun,” he added.

Earlier this month, the entire electoral procedure had come to a near-standstill over this one issue — where the Brus would vote. A protest through Mizo organizations in opposition to “particular” provisions being made for Bru citizens eventually led to the ouster of the former chief electoral officer SB Shashank and a decision that the polling could be held on the inter-state border — both strikes had been recommended through the Mizo civil society teams.

But not all the 12,014 registered Bru citizens may make it to Kanhmun. “Thousands — those that are physically challenged, previous or pregnant — had been not able to go away the camps,” Bruno Msha, basic secretary of the Mizoram Bru Displaced People’s Forum, informed TOI. He added, “About 300 others had been caught on the approach after the automobile transporting them broke down mid-way. Another 700 citizens reached the polling stations but mins after the gates had closed at 3pm.”

Besides, the Brus had requested for a few provisions holding in mind the long adventure and day-long polling. “We had started from our camps early in the morning, but there was once no breakfast. Lunch was once to be had, but shall we declare it most effective after casting our votes,” Msha stated, adding, “The queues had been long.”

The turnout of the Bru citizens, at 55 in keeping with cent, was once encouraging. “But it was once higher in 2013 after we may vote from our camps and 80% of the electors grew to become up. This time as well, we took the responsibility of exercising our franchise very seriously. But the enjoy may have been higher,” Msha added.