SHILLONG: NPP president and Lok Sabha member, Purno A Sangma, on Sunday took a dig at Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, saying that the Congress party cannot afford to have someone as irresponsible as the Chief Minister at the helm of affairs in the State.
The veteran politician was all-praise for the Congress leaders who, having understood the gravity of the situation, are now demanding for a change in leadership in the State.
Supporting the need for imposition of President’s Rule in Meghalaya, Sangma, however, opposed the idea of declaring Garo Hills as a ‘disturbed area’.
Sangma also came down heavily on the Chief Minister for the peace settlement with the ANVC, saying that the State Government should have taken all stakeholders including political parties on board since the entire issue revolves around the demand for a separate Garoland.
Expressing doubts over the success of the peace agreement, Sangma pointed out that the agreement has been reached with only one outfit whereas more than nine outfits are operating in Garo Hills.
“We are convinced that the agreement will not bring permanent peace in Garo Hills,” Sangma said.
The senior leader, however, refrained from committing anything on the issue of Garoland, even though he asserted that any bifurcation of the State has to be mutually agreed upon between major tribes of the State.
Terming the extension to the GHADC by another six months as unconstitutional, Sangma said the Government has not even constituted the committee for delimitation of the district council constituencies.
He also targeted the Chief Minister on the controversy surrounding his ST status saying that his (Mukul) case was very weak and he must be having sleepless nights over the issue.
He also accused the Chief Minister of trying to bring the Garo Customary Law Bill in the GHADC to save his faith.
Not seeking cabinet berth: On his political future, the Tura MP said that he was not expecting any Cabinet berth in the Union Ministry and confirmed that he has not even sought for the same.
He also affirmed that he has been an MP for ten terms and had never applied for a party ticket to contest elections.
