Zoramthanga's autobiography to detail his journey from labourer to Mizoram leader

Aizawl, April 29: From chiselling stones to chiselling history, former Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga's extraordinary journey from a student labourer to a key figure in the Mizoram insurgency and peace process - is set to be chronicled in his autobiography, to be published soon.

Speaking at the Mizo National Front (MNF) head-quarters on Monday, Zoramthanga said that the autobiography is being written in the Mizo language while the book will come out in English edition. The decision has already been finalised, he confirmed.

The autobiography is expected to offer a detailed and personal account of the MNF's armed uprising against the Indian government before and after 1966, the dramatic fall of Dacca (Dhaka) to the Indian and Mukti Bahini forces, the perilous movement of the MNF from East Pakistan into Arakan in Burma (now Myanmar), and Zoramthanga's own clandestine journey to Karachi and Islamabad with MNF leader Laldenga and his family. The memoir will also shed light on the secret negotiations that paved the way for the historic Mizo Peace Accord of 1986.

Born on July 13, 1944, in Samthang village near the Myanmar border, Zoramthanga completed his early education in Champhai town. He graduated with honours in English from DM College, Imphal in 1966 while hiding in the jungles of the then East Pakistan as part of the MNF freedom movement.

Reflecting on his youth, he recalled, "During my college days, I worked in a stone quarry, chiselling and carrying loads of boulders. To be precise, Iliterally chiselled my way to graduation. I think I earned enough to support myself then."

Zoramthanga served as the personal secretary to MNF president Laldenga for seven years before being appointed as the vice president of MNF in 1979. Following the signing of the Mizo Peace Accord, Zoramthanga served as a Cabinet minister in the interim government and later in the elected government led by Laldenga in 1987-88, until defections led to its fall.

After Laldenga's death in 1990, Zoramthanga was elected MNF president. Un-der his leadership, the party returned to power, ruling Mizoram from 1998 to 2008 for two consecutive terms. He again served as the Chief Minister from 2018 until the MNF was defeated by the Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) in the 2023 State elections. Although he lost his Aizawl North-1 seat to current PWD minister Vanlalhlana, Zoramthanga continues to lead the MNE

His autobiography is expected to offer rare insights into one of the most turbulent and transformative chapters of Mizoram's history