BJP sends feelers to sitting MP
SHILLONG: The All India Congress Committee is yet to take a call on who to give the tickets to contest the Shillong seat. While a senior AICC member, who was formerly observer for the North Eastern Region, says that he believes the ticket for the Shillong Lok Sabha seat should go to the sitting Member of Parliament, Vincent H Pala, the Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) is not confident of Pala’s ability to retain the seat.
What has gone against Pala is his active interference in the State Assembly elections held last year where he had set up a number of his hand-picked candidates against the official nominees put up by the party. Congress sources say that those who bore the brunt of Pala’s manipulative politics have prevailed upon the MPCC not to give the party ticket to Pala.
But the MPCC is a divided house. Those who are close to Pala feel that he still is a winnable candidate and what makes it easy to work for Pala is because he has a well-oiled machinery that runs like clockwork. “Pala not only has the money but he also knows how to deploy his funds and manpower very well. We wonder if any other candidate would have that expertise,” sources from MPCC said.
Meanwhile it is learnt that the BJP is keen to offer the ticket to Pala, who they feel is a winning candidate for the seat. Sources in the BJP have said that at a recent meeting of the party held in Guwahati, the BJP members rallied round the point of offering ticket to Pala. Feelers have been sent to the Shillong MP, but he has not yet given any green signal to the BJP. Pala has several supporters within the AICC and is sure that they will be able to push through his name for the Shillong seat. But, MPCC sources say that Chief Minister Dr. Mukul Sangma too will have a say on who will get the ticket finally.
It was after the entry of Congress legislator from Mylliem, Ronnie Lyngdoh last month in the race for party ticket that the issue of ticket allotment to contest Shillong seat has taken a new turn.
A section of the Congress MLAs and defeated legislators, who are against Pala, want Ronnie to contest the Shillong seat.
Earlier, besides Pala, Congress members John Kharshiing and Charles Pyngrope had applied for the party ticket with the nod from MPCC. Former Rajya Sabha MP OL Nongtdu had opted out of the race since he was unwell.