Kohima, March 21: The Koridang assembly constituency in Mokokchung district of Nagaland is gearing up for a multi-cornered by-election on April 9. Major political parties have announced their candidates for this crucial contest.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ally, the National People’s Party (NPP), have already declared their candidates. Following suit, the opposition Congress party also announced its candidate on Saturday.
Congress General Secretary (Organization) K.C. Venugopal stated that party president Mallikarjun Kharge has approved T. Chalukumba Ao as the candidate for the Koridang seat, which is reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST).
This by-election is being held due to the passing of former MLA Imkong L. Imchen, who died on November 11, 2024, in a private hospital in Guwahati at the age of 75. Imchen had won the Koridang seat five times: as an independent in 2003, on the Naga People’s Front (NPF) ticket in 2008, 2013, and 2018, and on the BJP ticket in 2023.
The BJP has nominated Daochier I. Imchen, the late legislator’s son, who is making his political debut through this election. Meanwhile, the NPP, led by Conrad K. Sangma, has selected I. Abengzang as its candidate.
Additionally, several smaller regional parties may also enter the fray, making the competition even more intriguing. In the 2023 assembly elections, NPF candidate Major Toshikaba (retired) contested from this seat but lost to BJP’s Imkong L. Imchen by a narrow margin of 276 votes.
According to the election schedule, the nomination process began on March 16 and will close on March 23. The scrutiny of nomination papers is set for March 24, with the last date for withdrawal of candidatures on March 26.
Vote counting will take place on May 4. There are a total of 22,390 voters in this constituency, including 11,013 women.
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