SHILLONG:
State Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will convene a meeting to resolve differences within the party, particularly between the party’s national executive member AL Hek and South Shillong legislator Sanbor Shullai, after the Independence Day celebrations.
Party’s chief Ernest Mawrie, on August 14, said that he will soon call legislators AL Hek and Sanbor Shullai and sit with them to resolve issues between the two.
Informing that the move is as per the direction of the party’s central leadership, Mawrie said, “The issue has been lying pending till date. Just after the Independence Day, as per the direction of our central leadership, we are going to have the state executive meeting and before that we will call both the legislators to resolve issues between them,” he said.
He said that, earlier, the state office bearers had decided to invite both Shullai and Hek in this regard, but “unfortunately, Hek had to go to London and last month, the South Shillong legislator was hospitalised.
Earlier, the problem between the two emerged when Shullai, on July 6, had interrupted United Democratic Party (UDP) and assembly Speaker, Metbah Lyngdoh’s speech when the latter was raising concerns over atrocities committed against the tribal communities across the country in a closed-door meeting with the then NDA presidential candidate Draupadi Murmu that was attended by almost all political leaders of the state.
Later, Shullai, had also sought action against his party colleague Hek for trying to take political mileage out of the incident, alleging that the issue was “blown out of proportion” by the Pynthorumkhrah legislator.
“We will sit together and resolve this communication gap between the two,” Mawrie assured.
The BJP chief, however, said that anybody who is vying for a BJP ticket in the upcoming 2023 polls will have to go through a list of procedures such as joining the party as a primary member and being active in the party’s proceeding for quite a while to be eligible for the ticket.
“The BJP is very different and to get a ticket from the party one has to be in line with the organisation’s ways and ideology. Until these things are properly followed, we cannot allot a ticket to anyone. That is the procedure of the party, not only in Meghalaya but throughout the country,” said Mawrie.
He was reacting to the party’s national executive member, Hek’s recent claims that suspended Congress legislator from West Shillong, Mohendro Rapsang, is keen on joining the saffron party ahead of 2023 assembly elections. “It is Hek statement but I can tell you that Rapsang has not approach us and I as the state president, have not met him,” said Mawrie.
Interestingly, Hek’s statement came after Mawrie’s decision to contest the 2023 polls from the West Shillong constituency.
Mawrei also expressed concern that the recent joining of people from Mawsynram, who mostly are supporters of All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) MLA Himalaya Shangpliang, was done in a rush.
“I don’t have anything against them but the only thing is that we have a system in the party. Anybody and everybody are welcome to join the party but since we have the mandal there at the district, they should have informed them about the joining,” he said.
Mawrie further asserted that be it a VIP or anybody, he or she has to go through the president to join the party.
“That’s the procedure we follow. We are a national party and, in any state, the president of the party has to communicate all these things. It’s the president role to receive people and induct them in the party; that is the procedure,” he said.