From the archives of insurgent outfits in India’s northeastern region has emerged an autobiography of Zoramthanga, which provides fascinating insights into how erstwhile Mizo separatist rebels hoodwinked Indian and Pakistani intelligence agencies on many occasions and under different circumstances.
The rebels belonged to the Mizo National Front (MNF), which had launched an armed rebellion demanding Mizoram’s independence from India in 1966. Mizoram was then a district of Assam, similar to the other hill states in the region.
Zoramthanga, who was second-in-command to Laldenga, the legendary chief of the secessionist Mizo National Front, subsequently became president of the MNF party, and then went on to become Mizoram’s chief minister. In his autobiography, “From Guerrilla Fighter to Chief Minister” (Penguin Random House, 2026), Zoramthanga recounted that from the very outset of the Mizo movement, the MNF leadership was certain that the campaign for Mizoram’s independence would not succeed without the support of foreign governments.
The MNF approached Pakistan and China for assistance owing to their adversarial relationship with India and proximity to the Northeast. At the time, Bangladesh was under Pakistan’s rule and had not yet been liberated.
