SHILLONG: The candidates are optimistic about their wins as the stage is set for the counting of votes for the twin Lok Sabha seats — Shillong and Tura — besides Selsella by-poll on Thursday.
For Shillong seat, the main fight is between Congress’s Vincent Pala and UDP’s Jemino Mawthoh though BJP candidate Sanbor Shullai is a deciding factor.
Pala, who is seeking re-election from Shillong for the third term, said he is confident of his win but at the same time admitted that it was a tough fight when all the political parties fielded a common candidate against him.
“I am hoping for the best and prepared for the worst,” he said even as he maintained that he does not trust exit polls but cannot even underestimate it.
As far as the performance of the Congress in the country is concerned, he said the party will get more than 100 seats and the friends of the Congress will get around 150 to 160 seats.
“Congress and its allies will form the government,” he said.
On the other hand, UDP’s Jemino Mawthoh, who contested the election with the backing of many political parties in the state, said the party has made all arrangements for the counting as far as deploying its volunteers is concerned.
“We are hopeful that there will be smooth sailing for us this time”, Mawthoh said while expressing concern over the issues related to EVMs.
He recalled that in the last Assembly elections, most of the EVMs were not functional.
Independent candidate THS Bonney said he cannot hazard any guess about the results since there are many factors but made it clear that it would not be a walkover for other candidates.
“There will be a fight and it will not be a walkover for others,” he said.
Though the state BJP has not made any comments on its prospects, both the state president Shibun Lyngdoh and candidate Sanbor Shullai will address the media on Thursday afternoon.