NPP, HSPDP to skip Meira Kumar’s address

SHILLONG: The National People’s Party (NPP) and the Hill State People’s Democratic Party (HSPDP) will not attend the address of presidential candidate Meira Kumar at the Annexe Hall of the Meghalaya Assembly on Wednesday.
However, the MLAs from Congress led MUA-II and the opposition UDP will be present in the meeting.
NPP legislator James Sangma said neither the party MLAs nor the party MP from Tura, Conrad K. Sangma, will attend the address of the former Lok Sabha speaker.
Kumar, who is the Opposition’s candidate against Ram Nath Kovind, the NDA consensus candidate, will visit Shillong to garner support for the presidential election.
NPP said on Monday that it would support Kovind.
HSPDP president Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit also confirmed that his party MLAs will not attend the address.  He, however, said the party is yet to decide whether to support Kovind or Kumar in the presidential elections.
UDP working president Jemino Mawthoh said the party will attend the meeting on Wednesday after it got an invitation. UDP will also attend Kovind’s address.
“We welcome both candidates and we would like to listen to them,” Mawthoh said and added that the party has not yet decided who to support.
Kovind, who has embarked on a nationwide tour, will visit the North East a day after Kumar.