No highlights on plans and agendas as UDP and INC prefer mudslinging
NONGPOH: Mudslinging, rather than highlighting of plans and agendas, armed the poll campaigning of the rival candidates of Congress and UDP in the Shillong Lok Sabha seat on Thursday.
Training guns at Shillong MP Vincent Pala at a public meeting organized by the Umsning Block UDP Committee at Umsning Ground in the afternoon, UDP candidate Paul Lyngdoh said AICC president Sonia Gandhi had viewed the performance of Pala as a failure because of which he was dropped from the post of minister of state from the UPA-II ministry.
Responding to his dropping from the Union ministry in a public meeting organized by Umsning Block Congress Committee (UBCC) held at Umsning in the morning, Pala said on the other hand that he was dropped from the ministry as to accommodate all MPs from NE in the ministry as the induction to the ministry was made on a rotation basis.
Urging the electorates to vote against the regional party, MPCC president Dr. D .D. Lapang said that the regional parties ended at Khanapara and it would be difficult to make any headway for them in Parliament.
Responding to the arguments of Congress, Paul pointed out in the public meeting that likeminded regional parties of the North East had formed the North Eastern Regional Parties Forum where they would work together. “We are not alone but we are now a pack.”
Apprising the electorates that Congress was a divided party, Paul said that there was such a big tussle for ticket for the Shillong seat that even chief minister Dr. Mukul Sangma preferred to skip the assembly election for three days to be in Delhi.
Clarifying on the stand of the Congress, Pala said that there wass no division in the Congress and they were all united. “No doubt there is a fight for ticket but the allocation of ticket they all agreed to work together.”
Stating that the days of the Congress are numbered, Paul said that after the election Congress would be reduced to a minority as the people were fed up of the misrule of the Congress in several states, appealing to the people to reject Congress.
Appealing to the masses not to be swayed by the notion that Congress’ days were numbered, Lapang said that they should not believe in the pre-poll analysis. “How can one claim where they will win when they have not even set up a candidate,” he asked.
The crowd turnouts in both the meetings – of INC and of UDP at Umsning Ground – were comparable, about 500.
Meanwhile, Paul, in another meeting organized by UDP Nongpoh Block Committee, said that during his tenure as urban affairs minister he had brought projects worth around Rs 40 crore in Nongpoh Town namely shopping complex, solid waste management and housing complex and construction of community hall.
Paul appealed to the people not to be swayed by religion and to avoid mixing religion with politics while referring to his other opponent in the fray Rev P B Basiawmoit.