By H H Mohrmen
In a general election where the fight is expected to be a very close one, victory in a few seats can make a huge difference to the victorious or the vanquished sides. In such a situation, the two seats that Meghalaya has can decide which party or which composition of parties can form the next government in the national capital. In the election where a few wins can be a favourable swing for any party or alliance, small states like Meghalaya can also become an important battle ground. Therefore a win in the state can add to the total tally of the alliance which can makes a huge difference and decides whether the alliance for the next five years, sits in the treasury or the opposition bench.
The regional party alliance led by NPP (although NPP is not a regional party) has achieved an important milestone when the parties were able to decide on common candidates to contest for the two Shillong and Tura Lok Sabha seats. But agreeing on a common candidate in the ensuing election is not enough; the pertinent question is which party will be able to clinch the two seats. Will it be the Congress or the ruling MDA that will come up victorious in the coming election?
The ability to agree on a consensus candidate is a major achievement, however, agreeing on a consensus candidate is one thing but ensuring that different party cadres work hard to ensure that the consensus candidate wins is another ball game. The success of the parties under the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance in the recently held election to the Khasi and Jaiñtia hills Autonomous District Council, could be a morale booster for the alliance, but the question is whether the public will vote on the same lines while electing a Member of Parliament (MP) as they voted for the Members of the District Council?
History has shown that election to the Lok Sabha in the state is not as popular as the election to the Legislative Assembly and the Autonomous District Councils. Even the voter turnout is comparably low when compared with the other two elections. Hence it would not be surprising if this time too, the MP election as usual does not draw as much crowd as the ADC and LA election did. Therefore it is expected that there will not be much festivity and the entire process will be lacklustre when compared to the two earlier elections. In terms of spending too, unlike the LA and ADC elections, the candidates for the Lok Sabha election do not have to go for an intensive campaign and the distance between the candidates and the voters is also immensely huge.
One thing which is sure is that the issues in the MP election will not be the same as those in the election to the District Councils or the Legislative Assembly. While the issues for the LA and the ADC elections are local-based, the issue for the Lok Sabha elections are national oriented. Political parties can come up with a wide range of issues, and the MUA and the Congress have many differences amongst them, yet it is obvious that they agree on one common issue and that is coal mining. The mining issue and particularly that of coal is the only major issue that both sides of the divide have devoted much of their time and energy to and it seems that this time too, the ban on coal mining is going to be a starred issue of both the Congress and the MDA.
Why would the coal mining continue to hijack and take precedence over all other issues that are plaguing the entire state? Are we saying that we do not have any issue other than coal mining? It is time that the public say, ‘enough is enough’ and calls on both the MDA and the Congress to change the narrative and give importance to other issues too. It is time for the political leaders and the public to ask ourselves how many people are really engaged in the mining business to influence the policy makers and make them devote much of their time and energy towards this one single issue. It is time that we raise our voices and ask what percentage of the population in the state depends on coal mining that we have to sacrifice the interests of the other sections of the population in the state for their sake?
Farmers may not have big money and cannot afford to approach the top courts in the country to address their issue, but should coal mining take precedence over the farmers’ problem? Or does the government and the Congress believe that our farmers do not have problems at all and everything is fine with them? Or are we saying that there is no farmers’ distress in the state just because no one has brought their concern and interest to light.
Just look at the kind of publicity that the coal mining ban in the state had for the last few years. Since the NGT ban on coal mining, maximum media space in both print and electronic was dominated by this issue only. As if the state does not have other problems other than mining. And sadly, in spite of the bad publicity from Ksan, and while the remaining bodies of the trapped miners are yet to be pulled out from the mine and handed over to their relatives, the coal miners and both the government and the opposition still have the audacity to raise their voices and demand for opening up of coal mining in the state. We have become shameless and devoid of even an iota of feeling either for those who have died or their families!
Why does it not cross our minds that we need to clean our mess first before we even approach the court for reopening of coal mining in the state? Not only that we do not care what happened in Ksan, but it is reported that transportation of coal continues unabated from the state in spite of the ban. This only goes to show how atrocious the coal mining lobbies are that they do not even respect the dead and ensure that they have proper send off ceremonies and they have no feelings for the bereaved families and do not respect their sentiments too. The government has failed the families of those trapped and it is duty bound to answer to the families of the two youths in particular who died in harness while they eking out a living.
Why do our political leaders ignore the youth and the unemployment issue which is like a ticking time bomb waiting to explode one day? If the politicians in the state had devoted as much time as they had to coal mining, they would have been able to come up with policies to address this very crucial issue, but that did not happen. In spite of the fact that mining is unsustainable and minerals will one day be exhausted and leave behind a land bereft of any living things, yet the leaders of the both the ruling and the opposition dispensation are all out in their effort to reopen mining in the state.
If this election would have any impact on the common person, it is time that the public decide on the narrative which is vital for the public and do not let the politicians decide what our needs are. It is time that the people change the narrative and also highlight the issues that are vital for the welfare and the progress of the general public. Job creation and farmers’ welfare and development should be a new priority of any candidate who is contesting the election this time. It is time that the youth take the lead and tell the politicians what is important to them and the future rather than letting them decide on their behalf.