Brig Sailo, PR Kyndiah dead
Source: The Sangai Express / Agencies

Aizawl/Shillong, March 27 2015 : Former Mizoram Chief Minister Brig Thenphunga Sailo died here today, family sources said.

Sailo (93) was rushed to the hospital at around 10 am and died there at 11.50 am after heart failure, its authorities said.

He is survived by wife Thansiami, sons, daughters and grandchildren.

Born on January 1, 1922, Sailo had joined the British Indian army in 1942 as a junior officer.

He was promoted to the rank of Brigadier of Indian army in 1966, the year the erstwhile Mizo National Front (MNF) declared independence from the Union.

When he retired from the army in 1974, he had formed the Human Rights Committee to ease the lives of Mizo people reeling under insurgency and alleged army excesses.

Sailo had formed a political party called Mizoram Peoples Conference in April 17, 1975 and it won the Mizoram union territory elections in 1977 and he became the second Chief Minister of the State.

He was elected to the State Assembly in 2008 for the last time and quit active politics at the age of 92 after his term ended in 2014 .

YVA condoles : The Young Vaiphei Association Imphal has condoled the demise of Brigadier T Sailo.

He was one of the first citizens from NE-India to reach the rank of a Brigadier in the Indian Army.

He also served as the Chief Minister of Mizoram after his retirement.

He stood firmly against human rights violation by the Indian Army in Mizoram and south Manipur during the MNF movement, said YVA.

His demise is an irreparable loss for the Zo people in particular and the NE in general.

At Shillong veteran Congress leader and former Union Minister Patty Ripple Kyndiah passed away here on Thursday night following a cardiac arrest, a family member said on Friday.

Kyndiah, 87, breathed his last around 11.40 pm.

He is survived by two daughters, three sons and a host of grandchildren.

Kyndiah, who retired from electoral politics in 2009, had served as a Union Minister in charge of Tribal Affairs and Development of North Eastern Region (DONER) in the Congress-led UPA Government.

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