In a major political development in Nagaland, 21 out of the 25 MLAs of the Naga People’s Front (NPF) joined the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) on Friday.

After the 21 legislators of the NPF switched sides, the NDPP now has 42 MLAs in the 60-member Assembly. NPF is left with four MLAs, the BJP has 12 while there are two Independent members.

The development comes after the party President Shurhozelie Liezietsu on Thursday announced that the party would contest the next year's Assembly election in the state on its own.

Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and BJP president Temjen Imna Along have said that they would continue with the alliance and contest the elections with the 2018 seat sharing formula of 40-20.

The NPF had joined the ruling People’s Democratic Alliance comprising the NDPP and the BJP in August last year to form the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), an opposition-less government in the state with the object of pushing the Naga political issue forward.

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