SHILLONG:
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma, on January 12, brushed aside rumours of a ‘hush-hush’ agreement between the NPP and MLAs of South Shillong and Mairang, limiting the candidates’ list to 58 out of 60.
Defending the NPP’s decision not to field candidates in these seats, Sangma said, “There is no specific reason for it. We don’t want to put up candidates for the sake of putting up candidates.”
Speaking to a section of the media on the sidelines of the party’s general election meeting at Polo Ground on January 12, the CM explained, “It so happened that we were not able to get candidates from these two seats and, though we found some people, we weren’t satisfied. So as a party, we decided not to go ahead with naming the candidates for Mairang and South Shillong.”
It may be mentioned that Mairang is being represented by UDP president Metbah Lyngdoh while BJP leader Sanbor Shullai is the sitting MLA of South Shillong.
Sangma stated that the party had been working towards identifying candidates and went ahead in areas where there is a strong chance to win.
On allegations that there could have been an understanding between the NPP and the MLAs of these constituencies, the CM rubbished the reports and said, “There is no understanding as such. It doesn’t work that way – you can make your own judgement and reach your own conclusion.”
Meanwhile, when asked whether the incumbency factor will likely affect the NPP’s prospects in the upcoming polls, Sangma replied in the negative.
Citing the characteristics of politics in Meghalaya, he said, anti-incumbency in the state can be characterised into two levels – MLA level and party or government level.
“We feel that a lot of work has been done by this government and hence, we see a lot of positivity; I don’t see any kind of extreme anti-incumbency. Yes, expectations are there and we were not able to fulfil all but we have done a far better job than what most people expected, especially keeping in mind the COVID challenges,” Sangma added.
Replying to queries on talks about a ‘Khasi CM’, Sangma said India is a democratic country and election is a democratic process, asserting that party MLAs have been very clear regarding the selection process.
“Whatever the results, the MLAs will decide. It is a democratic process. There is no discrimination in the party based on caste, tribe, community or religion,” he added.