Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga on Friday said around 1,000 militants of Mizo National Front (MNF), which was then an insurgent outfit, had a miraculous escape from East Pakistan after the victory of Indian armed forces and Mukti Bahini in 1971.

He said the MNF, now a political party ruling Mizoram, observes ‘Vijay Diwas’ as ‘Exodus Day’ commemorating the escape of its the then insurgents from East Pakistan.

As the Indian armed forces and Mukti Bahini neared Rangamati, which was then the headquarters of MNF, on 16 December 1971, the then MNF president Laldenga suggested the militants escape through a water route. Miraculously, a heavy fog hid their exit, according to written accounts of former insurgents of the outfit.

MNF waged an armed struggle from 1966 to 1986 for the separation of Mizoram from India, when a peace agreement was signed, ending the two-decade-long insurgency in the northeastern state.

On Vijay Diwas, #Mizoram remember the supreme sacrifices of our armed forces during the 1971 war.

Their unmatched valour, courage and self-sacrifice for the nation will forever be etched in our hearts!#VijayDiwas2022 pic.twitter.com/Doy1vAE0Zq

— Zoramthanga (@ZoramthangaCM) December 16, 2022

Founded by former Mizoram chief minister Laldenga, the MNF was rechristened from Mizo National Famine Front (MNFF) in 1961 to protest alleged inaction by the Centre over the famine situation in the Mizo-inhabited areas of Assam.

Initially starting with a peaceful uprising, the group went underground in 1966, spearheading a secessionist movement for 20 years before signing a peace agreement on 30 June 1986.

Mizoram became a full-fledged state on 20 February 1987.

Vijay Diwas is observed on 16 December every year to commemorate the victory of the Indian armed forces in the 1971 war with Pakistan.