State Congress can’t be a silent spectator, says Lapang
SHILLONG: The Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) on Monday defended the party’s move to suspend rebellious leader PN Syiem and at the same time slammed Shillong MP Vincent Pala for his outrage against the State Congress.
Addressing a press conference here on Monday, MPCC president DD Lapang said it was AICC’s directive to call a meeting of the MDCs without Syiem where the decision to suspend him was taken. He said similar meetings were called in the past too when the Congress changed CEMs in KHADC.
Lapang said though Syiem was given a long rope to settle the issues, he continued his utterances in public and that MPCC should not be expected to be a silent spectator.
MPCC also recalled the series of public statements made by the KHADC CEM against the Congress and the State government despite being a party member. “If the Congress does not get the number in KHADC, we will sit in the Opposition as we have done it in the past,” Lapang said and added that the central leadership tried its best to ensure unity and several AICC leaders visited Shillong to quell the situation.
According to Lapang, even Chief Minister Mukul Sangma was asked to calm down by the AICC. “MPCC does not brag but it acts,” he said.
Slamming Syiem, he said the party expected maximum support from its CEM before the by-polls but the CEM instead said he would not canvass for the party.
The party chief also slammed Pala by saying there were days when former MPs like PR Kyndiah and others were like “Big Brothers” and they never interfered in the lower level activities in the party.
Asked about Pala’s accusation that he was kept in the dark about the suspension, Lapang said the MP was with him last week during the party’s meeting at Congress Bhavan and that he himself told Pala that Syiem was not attending the CLP as well as the party meeting since he was not interested to be in the party anymore.
To a question on the role of Lapang who was with the dissident group in the past during the demand for change of leadership, the MPCC chief said that his role is to ensure stability in the party and in the government.
He said that though there were differences with the chief minister in the past, as the party president, he tried to settle the issue and expected others to follow suit.