Allies depend on BJP for funds: Shullai

SHILLONG: In a damning indictment of its partners in the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA), the BJP on Monday said no matter how much they criticised it they could not afford to divorce the saffron party because they would then face financial problems.
The party’s candidate for the Shillong Lok Sabha seat, Sanbor Shullai, who filed his nomination for the ensuing Lok Sabha election here on Monday, slammed the parties for criticising the BJP.
Speaking to media persons after filing his nomination, Shullai said that during elections every party criticised the BJP just for show, but after the results, the same parties chant “BJP bhai bhai”.
“They cannot divorce BJP. They know that if BJP is not there, there will be a lot of financial problems for them,” he said.
It may be mentioned that the BJP despite being a partner in the MDA has often faced the ire of the other constituents like NPP and UDP, who have gone hammer and tongs against the party more recently over the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill.
The BJP had pushed hard for enactment of CAB into law in spite of widespread protests against it in the North East. In fact, the protests had catapulted Chief Minister and national president of NPP Conrad Sangma as a leader of the region with various organisations and political parties rallying around him in their fight against the bill.
When asked about UDP pulling out from NEDA, he said it was the party’s call whereas BJP is a national party.
Earlier, a confident looking Shullai claimed that the people of the country will once again repose their faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi adding that it is useless for the people to waste their votes on other parties.
He maintained that once the BJP government is formed at the Centre, he along with different party leaders will take up long-pending issues of the state.
On being asked about the promise of the BJP to lift the ban on coal mining in the state if it comes back to power, he said that unfortunately, people of the state in the last Assembly elections gave only two seats to the party and hence they are working just as a coalition partner and could not lift the ban on coal mining.
When asked how would he convince the minorities to vote for a saffron BJP, he said that they (minorities) will vote as they are wise.
Cabinet minister AL Hek, the party’s state president Shibun Lyngdoh and other senior leaders were also present during the filing of nomination of Shullai.