Aizawl: A total of 43 cadres of the Lalhmingthanga Sanate-led faction of the Hmar People's Convention (Democratic), or HPC(D), will lay down arms and join the mainstream during a homecoming ceremony on Thursday, an official said.
Chief Minister Lalduhoma and Home Minister K. Sapdanga will grace the event to be held at the Police Central Training Institute in Sesawng, about 40 km from Aizawl, he said. Other ministers and MLAs are also likely to attend the ceremony, he added.
The Mizoram government had signed a peace accord with the group on April 14, marking a total end to insurgency in one of the country's most peaceful states.
Although it remained dormant for quite some time, the Sanate-led faction of HPC(D) was believed to be the last surviving ethnic insurgent group that carried out sporadic criminal activities in Mizoram.
The bilateral agreement signed at Sakawrdai in Aizawl district, the headquarters of the Sinlung Hills Council (SHC), focused on a comprehensive development agenda for the Hmar-dominated SHC region, with key provisions including an increase in the council's budgetary allocation, a special development package, infrastructure upgrades, and enhanced connectivity.
In its charter of demands, the HPC(D) urged the transfer of SHC administration from the General Administration Department (GAD) to the District Council and Minority Affairs Department, establishment of a Sinlung Hills Project Director's Office under the Rural Development Department, and a Sinlung Hills Agriculture Office at Sakawrdai.
The group demanded an increase in SHC budgetary allocation starting from the 2027-28 fiscal year and a special development package in the form of works.
The charter of demands also called for official recognition of Sikpui Ruoi and Hmar Martyrs' Day (May 16) as holidays within SHC jurisdiction, which currently covers 31 villages in northern and northeastern Mizoram bordering Assam and Manipur, along with the construction of key internal roads and the establishment of an Eklavya Model Residential School and a Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Awasiya Vidyalaya residential hostel within the council area, among others.
"The Government of Mizoram shall make utmost efforts to honour and implement the charter of demands submitted by the HPC(D)," the agreement stated.
The Sanate-led faction of HPC(D) is the last of three Hmar insurgent groups that have spearheaded a political movement in Mizoram since 1986.
Although their initial demand was the creation of an Autonomous District Council (ADC) under the Sixth Schedule, the first group, Hmar People's Convention (HPC), led by Hmingchungnunga, signed a peace accord with the Congress-led Mizoram government in July 1994, resulting in the establishment of the Sinlung Hills Development Council (SHDC) comprising 31 Hmar-dominated villages.
The second group, HPC(D) led by late H. Zosangbera, signed a pact with the Congress government in April 2018 after a series of talks that began in 2016.
The 2018 pact led to the creation of the Sinlung Hills Council (SHC) with enhanced autonomy under the SHC Act, 2018, replacing the earlier SHDC. The SHC has 14 members, including two nominated members, and is headed by a Chief Executive Member.
The first elections to the SHC, held on November 5, 2019, were won by the Mizo National Front (MNF) and HPC alliance, which secured 10 seats.
Previously, HPC was a registered but unrecognised political party, which was delisted by the Election Commission of India (ECI) in September last year for repeatedly failing to contest elections.
Although the party secured a seat in the 2003 Assembly elections, it did not contest subsequent Assembly polls, and its participation in local body (Village Council) elections also declined gradually after 2003.
Notably, HPC fielded its official candidates in the 2019 and 2024 SHC elections as independent nominees.
Sanate, who founded the HPC(D) due to disappointment over the 1994 accord, was impeached by the group in 2021 for signing a Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement in Manipur with other Kuki armed groups, resulting in a split within the faction.
Originally from Khawlian village in present-day Mizoram's Saitual district, Sanate operated with a few cadres from bases in Assam's Cachar district.
Although the group initially continued its demand for ADC, its activities gradually dwindled and it remained dormant for several years, except for sporadic criminal activities, particularly extortion, in Hmar-dominated villages.
A leader claimed that the present Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) government, headed by Chief Minister Lalduhoma, which has vowed to promote the integration of Mizo tribes and end insurgency in the state, has finally brought the Sanate group back into the mainstream following a series of backchannel talks.