Aizawl, Oct 22 (NationPress) Union Minister for Parliamentary and Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju called upon the citizens to back the BJP candidate in the upcoming Dampa Assembly by-election, which is set to take place on November 11.

During a public gathering at West Phaileng in Mamit district, Rijiju urged residents to endorse Lalhmangaiha, the BJP's nominee for the Dampa seat.

The Union Minister emphasized that if elected to the Mizoram Assembly, Lalhmangaiha would be better positioned to serve the state's populace compared to candidates from opposing parties.

Upon arriving in Aizawl, Rijiju, a Lok Sabha member from Arunachal Pradesh, quickly traveled to the West Phaileng area, part of the Dampa Assembly constituency, to initiate a two-day campaign for the by-election.

The media convener for Mizoram BJP, Johny Lalthanpuia, mentioned that Rijiju is scheduled to address another public rally at Reiek on Thursday before heading back to New Delhi.

Lalthanpuia also indicated that several central BJP leaders, including Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh, are expected to visit Mizoram to support the party's candidate.

Before the Election Commission announced the poll schedule on October 6, both the ruling and opposition parties had already declared their candidates and commenced their campaigns in this politically significant region.

The Chief Minister and head of the ruling Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM), Lalduhoma, expressed confidence on Tuesday that his party’s candidate, Vanlalsailova, a well-known Mizo singer and preacher, will secure victory in the upcoming by-election.

Lalduhoma asserted that historically, electoral trends in Mizoram have favored the ruling party during Assembly by-elections.

Lal Thanzara, President of the State Congress, accused both the ruling ZPM and the opposition Mizo National Front (MNF) of not fulfilling their previous electoral commitments during a meeting with party workers at Kanghmung village on Tuesday.

Other candidates contesting in the Dampa bypoll include MNF’s R. Lalthangliana, Congress’ John Rotluangliana, and Mizoram People’s Conference (MPC) nominee K. Zahmingthanga, resulting in a competitive five-way race.

Both Lalthangliana (MNF) and Rotluangliana (Congress) have previously served as state ministers. The Dampa Assembly seat became vacant following the passing of opposition MNF legislator Lalrintluanga Sailo on July 21.

On Wednesday, scrutiny of nomination papers was conducted, with the deadline for withdrawal of candidatures set for October 24.

An official statement revealed that Malsawmzuala, the Returning Officer for the Dampa (ST-reserved) Assembly Constituency, evaluated the nominations and deemed all submitted papers valid.

As per the Election Commission’s notification, nominations were accepted from October 13 to 21, with October 24 being the cutoff date for withdrawals.

The Dampa constituency, which shares a border with Bangladesh, is home to a significant minority demographic, including members of the Chakma and Reang tribal communities.

According to the final electoral rolls released on September 30, there are 20,790 eligible voters, among whom 10,185 are women.

The Election Commission has appointed three central observers — a General Observer, a Police Observer, and an Expenditure Observer — to monitor the electoral process. Security measures are being implemented under the guidance of State Police Nodal Officer H. Ramthlengliana, Inspector General of Police (Headquarters and Law & Order).