SHILLONG: The outcomes of the district council elections in Meghalaya have come as personal setbacks for several political bigwigs in the state, cutting across the party line.
Among them are MPCC President DD Lapang, UDP working president Paul Lyngdoh and Deputy Chief Minister Rowell Lyngdoh, not to mention Chief Minister Mukul Sangma himself whose painstaking campaigns did not help Congress win even a simple majority in either of the two councils for which polls were held. Congress could emerge only as the single largest party.
Being the MPCC President, Lapang could not ensure the victory for the Congress candidate in Nongpoh, his home constituency, as the seat went to UDP’s woman candidate Rona Kymdeit who will be a threat to the Congress veteran in the coming years. She defeated his rival Congress candidate Augustine Wahlang by a margin of 3406 votes.
Similarly, UDP working president Paul Lyngdoh was hopeful of the victory of party candidate from Jaiaw. But KHNAM, the party which Paul Lyngdoh had tried to merge with UDP, bounced back, with KHNAM leader Edelbert Nongrum, in a befitting reply to Lyngdoh, defeating UDP candidate Martamlin Pyrbot by a large margin of 6139 votes.
Deputy Chief Minister Rowell Lyngdoh is another veteran Congress leader from West Khasi Hills who could not make any impact in the district council elections as the party drew blank in all the five district council constituencies. Three seats in the district went to HSPDP, UDP bagging two. Two Congress Ministers, Roshan Warjri and AL Hek, campaigned for the Congress nominee Rocky Hek, who contested from Mawkhar-Pynthorumkhrah, but they could not make any difterence as KHNAM leader James Ban Basaiawmoit emerged victorious, defeating Rocky by a margin of 3242 votes.
Another Congress legislator from Mylliem, Ronnie Lyngdoh could not ensure the victory of his nominee Jonas Steven Syiem as HSPDP candidate , Teilinia Thangkhiew won the seat by a margin of 2467. His closest rival was UDP candidate Hamlet Dohling and not the Congress nominee. In its first list of candidates, Congress had announced the candidature of Ronnie Lyngdoh, but he had proposed the name of Jonas Steven Syiem, preferring to apply for himself the paty ticket for the Shillong Lok Sabha seat.