SHILLONG:
The United Democratic Party (UDP) and the Hill State People’s Democratic Party (HSPDP) on Tuesday reconstituted the Regional Democratic Alliance (RDA) to jointly prepare for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, slated to be held next year.
The RDA is all set to come up with a consensus candidate of the alliance for the Shillong parliamentary seat.
UDP chief Metbah Lyngdoh was renominated as chairman and HSPDP chief KP Pangniang as secretary of the alliance. HSPDP’s senior leader and Mawkynrew MDC Martle Mukhim was nominated as co-chairman and UDP East Khasi Hills president Titosstarwell Chyne as assistant secretary.
After chairing the RDA meeting, Lyngdoh said, “We are pleased to note that both the parties have agreed in principle to ensure that the RDA is still intact and to continue to work for its interest.”
“We have also decided to have 11 more members, who will be nominated by both the parties,” he said.
The UDP chief said the two regional political parties have been working together and the reconstitution of the RDA was decided in a meeting held on May 30, after the 2023 Assembly election.
To a question, Lyngdoh said the other issues including the candidates for the Lok Sabha election will be discussed in the next meeting of the RDA to be held shortly. He said they will also discuss and take a call on the upcoming elections to the KHADC and JHADC in the next meeting.
Pangniang informed that the meeting also decided that six members will be nominated from the UDP and five from the HSPDP in order to have a full body of office-bearers of the RDA.
He said the two political parties have discussed at length on the need for each party to take a call on how to proceed with the preparation for the MP elections under the umbrella of the RDA.
“We have in today’s meeting decided that we will inform each and every member of the HSPDP and UDP that we will re-strengthen this alliance and we will also allow to discuss the preparation of the MP election by having internal discussion by each party,” he added.
The HSPDP chief said that both the parties will identify the candidate for Shillong seat and propose the same before the RDA for taking a collective decision on the matter.
“We have no restriction on any party to have a candidate but a decision will be taken collectively by the alliance. It doesn’t matter if a candidate will be from the HSPDP or UDP, but we will be under the umbrella of the RDA and take a collective decision,” he said.
Pangniang said the two political parties did not have any pre-poll alliance or sharing of seats but there was only mutual understanding during the last 2023 MLA elections as well as 2019 MDC elections.
Meanwhile, Pangniang said that the UDP and HPSPD will have a thorough discussion on the MDC elections in the coming days.
