SHILLONG:
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Saleng Sangma, on April 1, slammed All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) legislator Mukul Sangma for not taking any initiative to resolve the vexed border issue with Assam during his tenure as the state’s chief minister.
“When he was the chief minister, Mukul had said that he will resolve the issue within no time. But nothing concrete came out of those claims,” Saleng said. He further said that, at that time, both Meghalaya and Assam had Congress governments, yet they didn’t take any initiative to resolve the issue. “They are cowards,” Saleng said.
The Gambegre legislator also highlighted the failures of the former chief ministers to resolve the boundary dispute.
“What about DD Lapang, why didn’t they do it? What about Captain Williamson Sangma, what about BB Lyngdoh – they should have initiated some steps, at least,” Saleng said.
Lauding the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government’s decision to resolve the boundary dispute, Saleng said, “It is a long-pending issue and nobody has taken the step to address the situation. (However), this government has taken the initiative which I appreciate, but whether they have taken the correct step or not, I can’t say. But at least, they have taken the initiative.”
“At least, this government has taken a chance on it and decided to face the consequences. There will be lots of litigation, there will be lots of consequences and lots of allegations as it is problematic,” he said.
Reacting to the protests by certain quarters against the signing of the agreement between the two states on the vexed border row, Saleng, citing Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s quotes on the issue, said that since the final call on the issue now lies with the parliament, he is confident that, if any issue arises, Conrad Sangma will apprise the parliament about it.