Two of the three BJP candidates contesting Wednesday's election from Manipur's Ukhrul district have civil services background. They also belong to the family of V S Atem, former NSCN(IM) army commander and a member of its steering committee. The candidate in Ukhrul is Somtai Shaiza, son-in-law of Atem's brother Dr. Nelson Vashum. Another brother of Atem, Sword Vashum, is the BJP candidate from Chingai. Vashum, 68, retired as additional deputy comptroller and accountant general in 2009. In 2015, he quit the NPF and joined the BJP. Shaiza comes from a political family. His uncle Yangmaso Shaiza was a former chief minister of Manipur. Another uncle, W Shaiza was a former chief secretary of Delhi. Significantly, both are contesting on the BJP ticket when the NSCN(IM) has thrown its weight behind the Naga People's Front, and when it has a diktat that senior NSCN(IM) "officers" and their relatives cannot contest. Two weeks ago, Atem issued a statement distancing himself from Vashum's decision to contest. A BJP insider says, "Vashum was doing so well that he was literally told to sit down.' Shaiza, who lost on a Trinamool ticket in 2012, says this election is more "sensitive". He suddenly gets a call from a BJP worker in a village and asks his staff to send someone there to "handle" the situation. "These NSCN(IM) cadres have been threatening villagers, especially in far-flung villages, to vote only for the NPF." The NSCN(IM) has instructed all village councils to not entertain candidates of any party but the NPF.