SHILLONG: Conrad Sangma has rooted for a united regional force strong enough to drive away the national parties from Meghalaya.
Addressing a gathering at Polo Second Ground where the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) held a rally on Tuesday in support of its common candidate Jemino Mawthoh, the national president of NPP said regional forces must “combine and come together as one voice for the Lok Sabha elections”.
Mawthoh will confront two national party candidates – Congress’s Vincent Pala and BJP’s Sanbor Shullai. However, BJP is again an ally in the MDA.
The chief minister rejected the national parties deciding state affairs because “they will never understand the sentiments of the people” in the northeastern region. “The national parties have disrespected the identity of the people (in the region),” Sangma told the gathering.
“Northeastern states have a lot of potential and the national parties will not make any difference despite the Act East and Look East policies,” he added.
Asserting that Mawthoh “is a candidate of the government”, Sangma upheld the spirit of a united alliance by saying, “We are all equal in this government and in the spirit of the coalition, we (the MDA partners) are taking it forward.”
He said despite differences, the MDA partners are united on the agenda of common candidate.
“We are united and will always fight for our people,” he added as he struck the ‘unity’ chord to echo the sentiments of MDA allies.
Poll rhetoric and mudslinging continued with the chief minister and other allied leaders staying away from discussing real issues most of the time.
Sangma said being a chief minister or a minister “is not a privilege and instead it must be looked at as an opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives”.
He took a dig at the previous Congress government and recalled that once his father, Purno A Sangma, had asked an MLA on the workings of the Congress government, to which the MLA had said “Mukul Sangma’s government is a JCB government”.
Mawthoh banked on the unity and stability of the MDA government as well as the executive committees of the autonomous district councils in Khasi and Jaintia Hills.
He said the fight in the current Lok Sabha election is between the Congress and the MDA candidates and sought people’s support to oust the Congress.
HSPDP president KP Pangniang raised the unresolved inter-state border issue and was firm on not allowing the Congress to win.
He spoke about the Langpih incident when the then chief minister Mukul Sangma and the Congress had assured to find a permanent solution to the boundary dispute.
He wanted to know whether Vincent Pala followed up the boundary commission. “The MP did not raise the issues of coal mining, influx and inclusion of Khasi language in the Eighth Schedule in Parliament,” he added.
PDF’s Ivanlumlang Marbaniang maintained that the MDA is united as there is mutual understanding amongst the coalition partners.