BJP not to contest council polls

SHILLONG: The BJP has decided not to put up any candidate for the KHADC-JHADC polls scheduled for February 27.
The last date for filing nominations is Friday.
State BJP president Shibun Lyngdoh said the party has taken a decision not to field candidates as the party nominees may not get the much needed support due to the ongoing unrest over the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (CAB).
The BJP has two MLAs, AL Hek and Sanbor Shullai, but they are supporting their nephews, Rocky Hek (Independent) and Ricky Shullai (UDP), respectively.
According to the BJP leader, the party cannot blindly field candidates as the situation needs to be assessed.
“The ground reality is that there is so much anger against CAB and we will have to wait and watch,” Lyngdoh said.
Earlier, BJP state general secretary Bashailang Khongwir had petitioned the Centre to exempt Meghalaya and the rest of the North East from the purview of CAB.
Lok Sabha polls
The BJP state chief said though the party wanted to contest the Lok Sabha polls, it will depend on the outcome of the discussion among the NPP-led MDA partners.
“We are partners of MDA and the selection of candidates for the two Lok Sabha seats will be discussed in the MDA,” he said.