Nagaland set to get first woman Rajya Sabha MP
Kohima Mar 21 PTI BJPs S Phangnon Konyak is all set to become the first woman Rajya Sabha member from Nagaland as no other candidate filed nomination for the March 31 election to the lone seat from the state on Monday which was the last dayKonyak the consensus candidate of the ruling United Democratic Alliance UDA will also be the first BJP member from Nagaland to be sent to Parliament Naga Peoples Front NPF which had expressed strong determination to field a candidate despite being a part of the UDA — which runs an opposition-less government in the state backed out at the last momentIn the 60-member assembly NDPP has 21 MLAs NPF 25 BJP 12 and there are two Independent MLAs all of whom joined hands in September 2021 to form UDA for facilitating an early solution to the vexed Naga political dialogueOn Saturday NPF president Shurhozelie Liezietsu had written to its legislature party to consider nominating its working president and former home minister Thenucho Tunyi for the electionHowever the working committee and the legislative wing of the NPF failed to come to a conclusion till Sunday party sources saidOn the letter by Liezietsu NPFs legislature party secretary Chumben Murry said The UDA government was formed on the understanding of pursuing Naga political issue for a negotiated solution at the earliest Consequent upon which one of the NPF MLA was inducted in the Cabinet along with chairman UDAUnder the given situation the NPF cannot file nomination to the Rajya Sabha election which will tantamount to withdrawal from the coalition government of UDA As NPF refrained from filing nomination Konyak — the BJP womens wings state president — was the only candidate to have filed nomination thus securing her seat without a contestShe will also be the second Naga woman parliamentarianSince statehood in 1963 Nagaland got only one woman parliamentarian Rano M Shaiza who was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1977 The state never had a woman MLAThe tenure of the incumbent Rajya Sabha member from Nagaland KG Kenye of NPF ends on April 2Speaking to reporters an elated Konyak expressed gratitude to the BJP for nominating her BJP is a party which believes in women empowerment and there is a lot of hope in the party she saidAsked about her priorities as the first woman Rajya Sabha member from the state she said she would decide on it after deliberating with the elected representatives of the stateWomen comprise 50 percent of the electorate While Naga women have been very actively involved in politics but were not forthcoming to contest the elections she said urging them to come forward to fight electionsBJP Nagaland president Temjen Imna Along said that his party got the Rajya Sabha seat as part of an agreement with NDPP ahead of the 2018 assembly electionsWe look forward to working more for women empowerment in the days to come said Along adding that there were nine ticket hopefuls but only the woman candidate was selected by the partys central leadership PTI NBS SOM SOM
Kohima Mar 21 PTI BJPs S Phangnon Konyak is all set to become the first woman Rajya Sabha member from Nagaland as no other candidate filed nomination for the March 31 election to the lone seat from the state on Monday which was the last dayKonyak the consensus candidate of the ruling United Democratic Alliance UDA will also be the first BJP member from Nagaland to be sent to Parliament Naga Peoples Front NPF which had expressed strong determination to field a candidate despite being a part of the UDA — which runs an opposition-less government in the state backed out at the last momentIn the 60-member assembly NDPP has 21 MLAs NPF 25 BJP 12 and there are two Independent MLAs all of whom joined hands in September 2021 to form UDA for facilitating an early solution to the vexed Naga political dialogueOn Saturday NPF president Shurhozelie Liezietsu had written to its legislature party to consider nominating its working president and former home minister Thenucho Tunyi for the electionHowever the working committee and the legislative wing of the NPF failed to come to a conclusion till Sunday party sources saidOn the letter by Liezietsu NPFs legislature party secretary Chumben Murry said The UDA government was formed on the understanding of pursuing Naga political issue for a negotiated solution at the earliest Consequent upon which one of the NPF MLA was inducted in the Cabinet along with chairman UDAUnder the given situation the NPF cannot file nomination to the Rajya Sabha election which will tantamount to withdrawal from the coalition government of UDA As NPF refrained from filing nomination Konyak — the BJP womens wings state president — was the only candidate to have filed nomination thus securing her seat without a contestShe will also be the second Naga woman parliamentarianSince statehood in 1963 Nagaland got only one woman parliamentarian Rano M Shaiza who was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1977 The state never had a woman MLAThe tenure of the incumbent Rajya Sabha member from Nagaland KG Kenye of NPF ends on April 2Speaking to reporters an elated Konyak expressed gratitude to the BJP for nominating her BJP is a party which believes in women empowerment and there is a lot of hope in the party she saidAsked about her priorities as the first woman Rajya Sabha member from the state she said she would decide on it after deliberating with the elected representatives of the stateWomen comprise 50 percent of the electorate While Naga women have been very actively involved in politics but were not forthcoming to contest the elections she said urging them to come forward to fight electionsBJP Nagaland president Temjen Imna Along said that his party got the Rajya Sabha seat as part of an agreement with NDPP ahead of the 2018 assembly electionsWe look forward to working more for women empowerment in the days to come said Along adding that there were nine ticket hopefuls but only the woman candidate was selected by the partys central leadership PTI NBS SOM SOM
