Mizoram election Assembly 2018: Day after Congress 'threat' over venue, BJP pushes Narendra Modi rally out of Aizawl

AIZAWL: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will give the public rally here a miss and only address a gathering at Lunglei, headquarters of one of the three districts where the Brus hail from, on Friday.
"PM Modi will not hold a public meeting in Aizawl. He will address a rally at Lunglei. Here, he will have a small meeting with the leaders of the Young Mizo Association (YMA) and the Mizo Hmeichhe Insuikhawm Pawl (MHIP)," president of the Mizoram unit of BJP, JV Hluna, told TOI.The YMA, the apex body of Mizos, and the MHIP, a Mizo women's organization, are two influential civil society bodies of the state.
This comes a day after Congress threatened to not allow Modi's rally to be held on the Assam Rifles ground. "Congress has resolved to stop any public rally by PM Modi here at the Assam Rifles ground," spokesperson of the Mizoram Pradesh Congress Committee Lallian Chhunga told TOI. BJP was reportedly planning to organize Modi's rally at the Assam Rifles ground here and it is the venue that has become a bone of contention.
Congress accused BJP of forcing the Assam Rifles to deny it permission for holding party president Rahul Gandhi's rally on the Assam Rifles ground. "BJP controls the Assam Rifles. Even the Aizawl deputy commissioner wrote a strongly-worded letter to the Assam Rifles. But they refused to give us the permit," Chhunga said. On Tuesday, Rahul's rally was eventually moved to the Mizoram Armed Police parade ground at Mualpui on the outskirts of Aizawl.
"They (Assam Rifles) did not allow Rahul Gandhi to address a public rally at the ground at the very last minute, citing Union home ministry intervention. How can Modi hold a rally at the same place?" Chhunga added.
Congress said the Assam Rifles had rejected another request by the party for Rahul's rally, then scheduled for October 5, with an explanation that the ground is meant to be used "for sports purposes only". On December 16 last year, Modi had addressed a public rally at the Assam Rifles ground here during his first visit to Mizoram since he took charge as Prime Minister.
Congress is determined to make the best out of whichever way this controversy goes. "If the ground is granted to Modi, it will work to Congress's advantage and expose the way the saffron party works," Chhunga said. And if BJP foregoes the rally? "They know they do not even have the strength to mobilise a large crowd of real supporters," Chhunga added.
The BJP's central leadership has been focussing on minority-dominated areas in its campaign in Christian-majority Mizoram, where it has never won a seat. Party president Amit Shah skipped the manifesto release here on Tuesday and addressed rallies at Lanwgtlai and Vairengte, both in districts Bru voters hail from. Union home minister Rajnath Singh went to Mara-dominated Siaha, Bru-dominated Mamit and Chakma-dominated Chawngte-Kamalanagar.