TURA/SHILLONG: The Congress-backed executive committee in the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC), led by former NPP rebel Boston Marak, is heading for a collapse with MDCs from the ruling alliance switching over to the NPP-led opposition camp.
Three Congress MDCs and one NCP member joined the NPP barely two weeks after the Congress lost power to the NPP alliance in the Assembly elections.
The four MDCs – Smith Momin (Congress) from Kharkutta, Dhormonath Sangma (Congress) from Tikrikilla, Jogonsing D Sangma (Congress) and Rightious N Sangma (NCP) – on Tuesday wrote to GHADC Chairperson Sadhiarani Sangma announcing their withdrawal of support to the Boston-led Executive Committee.
Reports indicate that more MDCs from the ruling alliance are contemplating a switch-over that will render the current EC rump ahead of the next council session.
NPP MLA SG Esmatur Mominin, who is also an MDC, said the members who will join the NPP had met Chief Minister Conrad Sangma to discuss the matter of joining NPP.
The three-member GNC group has expressed its willingness to return to the NPP camp although many in the opposition are unforgiving to the former for their betrayal last year, which lead to the collapse of the NPP regime in the GHADC.
Boston said he too has heard about such developments but he has not received any letter from the MDCs who are intending to shift their allegiance.
The chief executive member also said shifting of allegiance was nothing new in district councils as many MLAs tend to change their party whenever a new government comes into power in the state.
This comes after the district council in Jaintia Hills saw the power line tilting away from the Congress.
According to Boston, the present strength of the Executive Committee is 18. On being asked about the need to introduce anti defection law in the district councils, he said stability was required in the council for development.
He, however, said the matter pertaining to introduction of anti-defection law depends on the Law Department.
In the last GHADC election three years ago, NPP bagged 10 seats against the Congress’s seven.
Frequent switchovers in the absence of any anti-defection law have only compounded the problem.
