The need for revival and promotion of customs and traditional The need for revival and promotion of customs and traditional practices and protection of people’s rights is at the crux of what led to the formation of Meghalaya’s fifth regional party, the People’s Democratic Front, in March this year. Just six months old, the new entrant in electoral politics of the state appears to be ticking the right boxes, highlighting pertinent issues of the common man as it gears up for the 2018 Assembly elections and pledges to bring about a much needed “change”.Auspicious Lyngdoh Mawphlang, the general secretary of PDF, believes that the party’s objectives of implementing policies favouring the people, bringing them closer to the government and, more importantly, empowering the weaker sections of society, will instill confidence among the electorate and turn the tide in the debutant’s favour.A postgraduate in Environmental Science from NEHU and former president of NEHU Students’ Union, Auspicious says protecting the customs and traditions, powers of the village headman and farmers besides strengthening the state’s unique land holding system are at the core of the party’s ideology. The former chairman of the Campaign For Change — a movement that highlighted people-centric issues in the blocks, villages and districts in 2016 — believes that tapping local resources for development and formulating people-centric policies in sectors such as agriculture, power, transport and forest and environment will help bring about a transformation that has eluded the state for long. Saurav Bora caught up with the 28-year-old leader for an interview at the party head office in Upper Nongrim Hills on Wednesday evening.
Here are the excerpts of the interview:
ST: What objective did the founders of PDF have in mind when the regional party was floated earlier in the year?
Auspicious: Our objective as a party was to bring about a change and development by tapping the latent potential. Till date, unlike some of the other states, Meghalaya, despite its potential, is yet to implement policies in sectors such as agriculture, power, transport, forest and environment or for that matter policies for land use given its traditional holding system. There is no labour policy too. So, we felt that a platform in the form of a political party was of utmost importance and it was in January this year, when the process to float PDF started.
ST: Meghalaya had four regional parties before PDF. Will another make a difference?
Auspicious: See…We will address the issues of the state and if the people are confident about our party, they will support us …Let me reiterate that since a transformation in the state was not evident, we decided to make it happen by floating a political party, particularly at a time when other parties were not taking the issues seriously.
ST: Twelve MDCs have joined PDF. Any MLAs joining the party?
Auspicious: Not till now…We are approaching MLAs and aspirants…The picture will be clear in two to three weeks from now.
ST: The MDCs who had joined the party mentioned that one of their agenda was to create separate states for Khasi/Jaintias and Garos. How far will this be practical?
Auspicious: No, this will never be our agenda. In fact, one of our aims is to build a strong and unified society.
ST: KHADC chief executive member PN Syiem has still not clarified when he would join PDF. Can you throw some light on it?
Auspicious: We keep meeting him every now and then…we expect that he joins the party soon. His joining will certainly make a difference.
ST: Peoples Democratic Movement, which is an offshoot of the Federation of Khasi Jaintia and Garo People, could not sustain itself. Is there concern that the new regional party might meet a similar fate?
Auspicious: If you analyse PDM, the party did not have leaders who could keep pace with the political situation… they could not win elections… But we have a strong agenda and therefore there is no concern as such.
ST: How many seats will the party contest and how many does it expect to win?
Auspicious: We are targeting 40 at the most and should win about 20-22 seats.
ST: Is the party going alone in the elections or is there an alliance plan?
Auspicious: Till now, we do not have a pre-poll alliance…there may be a post-poll tie-up… But as of now we have not decided.
ST: Is the regional coalition gaining strength ahead of the polls?
Auspicious: Well…the people will decide and once they know that the party issues and agenda are in sync with their aspirations, they will definitely support that party…But yes, there is an anti-incumbency factor, which is a positive sign for a regional party like ours.
ST: What is your assessment of the incumbent government?
Auspicious: The Congress-led MUA government has contributed very less towards development as they have not been able to tap resources. Lack of policies, be it in agriculture, power and health among other sectors has not helped.
ST: Of late, there were about 8,000 people at a party meeting in Umsning. This shows that despite being a new entrant, the party has public support. Which are the other areas that you think the party is focusing on to garner similar support?
Auspicious: We have completed formation of zonal committees in 13 constituencies. In Ri-Bhoi district, we have formed such committees in three constituencies, while in East Khasi Hills and West Khasi Hills we have formed five each. As of now, we hope to contest from all the seats in Khasi and Jaintia Hills, where we think we have the maximum support. In Ri Bhoi, the feedback has been good too. In Garo Hills, we are working ….discussing with aspirants…in the coming week, a meeting will be held there and the response from the electorate can be gauged thereafter.
All said and done, we see a good response from the people and with time we expect that they will be more confident.
ST: When are you selecting your candidates?
Auspicious: We are forming an election committee next week…The chief election committee of the party will take a call thereafter.
ST: What will be the outcome of the 2018 Assembly polls?
Auspicious: (Pauses)…Difficult to predict at this moment…but I can say that there will be a non-Congress government for sure… based on the fact that the incumbent government has not been able to perform in accordance with the aspirations of the people.