Veteran leaders may be hinting Veteran leaders may be hinting at a shift in allegiance, while there are many more that have joined other parties or are following suit ahead of the 2018 Assembly elections in Meghalaya. But the incumbent Congress has belittled any speculations about their camp being wobbly. On the contrary, the party believes that the ground reality is just the opposite and a clear picture would emerge once the elections happen.Congress minister and Rangsakona MLA Zenith M Sangma who was elected twice from Rangsakona in 2003 and 2013 too is certain that the party will fare better than 2013 and cross the halfway mark in 2018. The Cabinet minister, who currently holds portfolios such as taxation, excise, housing and sports and youth affairs, is of the view that anti-incumbency affects every government but it all boils down to how a leader overcomes the phase.Saurav Bora caught up with the minister who was in his chamber at the Meghalaya Secretariat on Friday after a hectic outdoor schedule.
Here are the excerpts of the interview:
ST: With Congress veterans such as Rowell Lyngdoh, Prestone Tynsong and many others on the verge of joining the National People’s Party (NPP), is the party camp jittery?
Zenith: Congress is very much intact. A few people were having clandestine meetings with leaders of other political parties… they have been reported several times and thereafter the party leadership tried to verify and crosscheck and on the basis of certain inputs, the party has taken action… and this development is the fallout of that. Because nobody is indispensable in the Indian National Congress and nobody is above the party. The Indian National Congress is a very strong and old party and there are numerous leaders in the party.
ST: How do you see the Congress faring in Garo Hills, now that your main rival, NPP, has more people in its camp?
Zenith: That is your speculation…whether they are gaining numbers or not, the ground reality will tell. And they will be exposed once the election takes place.
ST: What about Khasi Hills?
Zenith: In Khasi Hills, the fight will be multi-cornered. In some constituencies there will be UDP, in very few constituencies there will be Independents…
ST: Will your brother, Chief Minister Mukul Sangma be projected as the next leader by the party during the run up to the 2018 Assembly elections?
Zenith: You see, we are heading the government… and Mukul Sangma is the present Chief Minister….Unless some big blunder is committed and if the High Command thinks otherwise on this …as per the conventions and directives of the party, the leadership remains.
ST: Congress has 30 legislators now. Will it be able to cross the halfway mark in the polls next year?
Zenith: Very much…Definitely, because the number is increasing election after election. In the last elections also there were speculations and predictions that a non-Congress government would come to power. But still we managed to get 29 and become the single largest party. We were expecting to cross the halfway mark…but lost in two seats. The second-largest party had won only eight, which meant that there was no contest at all…Subsequently in the by-elections, we won in Chokpot, and number of seats became 30.
ST: Do you see BJP, new entrant People’s Democratic Front or the regional coalitional of UDP-HSPDP as a threat to the party’s poll prospects?
Zenith: There is no threat at all to the party. But the leaders in different political parties are thinking that BJP can do magic. So their speculation is that BJP will not allow the Congress to form the government….They have become unsure …because they do not have any spine. They are nervous and panicky…They think that by joining other political parties where they will get the backing of the BJP….In such a situation, you can identify the leaders who are with the party through thick and thin…
ST: Will anti-incumbency affect the party’s winnability factor?
Zenith: Everywhere… be it any government…every time…more or less there will be anti-incumbency…There is anti-incumbency at the Centre also… But the important thing is how to manage and overcome such a challenging phase…
ST: Other parties have managed to rope in MLAs to their fold. What about Congress wooing Independents to the party?
Zenith: You see…BJP does not have any base. That is why they are trying to lure the readymade, elected MLAs… which we cannot do.
ST: Lastly, any prediction as to who will triumph in the polls?
Zenith: Normally we do not divulge such internal predictions to the media…only when the time comes, things will be made known.