From CK Nayak
New Delhi: Buoyed with the unexpected success in the just concluded Assembly polls in Meghalaya, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) rushed senior Congress leader and Union Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi to Shillong as an observer for the meeting of the Congress Legislature Party likely to be held on Friday.
Ravi along with AICC general secretary in charge of Meghalaya, Mukul Wasnik, and secretary Sanjay Bapna will meet the elected MLAs of the party and along with the CLP members will basically take a decision on the leadership issue and possible alliance with other parties or Independents.
Meanwhile, all the elected MLAs and top party leaders held a meeting here on Thursday to discuss the post poll scenario. Leaders from Garo Hills are arriving in the state capital on Friday.
Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) working president Deborah Marak, who reached the State capital late Thursday night, said that the Congress will go by the directive of the AICC on the need to have coalition with regional parties or with independents.
She also informed that senior AICC leaders would participate in the CLP meeting scheduled for Friday to discuss the candidate for the Chief Minister’s post.
The Congress, which has won 29 seats, is not expected to face any hurdle in garnering at least two more legislators to support the party in government formation since many of the Independents who won were either supported by the party leaders or were rebel candidates.
The NCP too has an ‘unwritten tie up’ with Congress and might extend unconditional support as is the practice in the Centre.
It will be difficult for the UDP to support the Congress since its main triumphant leader Paul Lyngdoh had been dropped from the Congress-led Government.
The HSPDP too may not come forward since both its MLAs had been earlier dropped from the Ministry while one MLA had even fought against party president as a Congress candidate.
Meanwhile, with the victory of former Chief Minister SC Marak, many leaders have emerged among the Congress, who would be vying for the top post.
MPCC president DD Lapang, HDR Lyngdoh and Prestone Tynsong are already in the line up, besides many preferring the incumbent Chief Minister Dr Mukul Sangma to continue for a second innings.
Considering Mukul’s antipathy towards Purno and the marginalization of the NPP, Congress will not take help of that party.
“But the whole exercise will be to have a stable Government,” a party top brass said on Thursday.
Taking his usual stand Mukul is believed to be in favour of continuing the present regime upon which the electors have reposed their faith.
Though Congress has done exceedingly well in Garo Hills, considered to be the bastion of Purno, some of Mukul’s arch rivals like MPCC working president Deborah Marak and former Chief Minister Salseng C Marak have also won the elections despite factional fights.
On the other hand Congress has also done well in Khasi Hills where MPCC President DD Lapang is a strong contender.
Former Union Minister and lone party MP Vincent H Pala, who is camping in Shillong, will also play a big role even though many of his supporters lost in the hustings. The shock defeat of Assembly Speaker Charles Pyngrope has also added a new dimension to the leadership drama which will be slowly unfolding in the coming few days.