SHILLONG, Feb 4: The differences within the MDA coalition appear to have reached a crescendo.
National People’s Party leader and Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong on Thursday hinted that the bad blood over corruption charges would end if the BJP leaves the coalition.
“As I had said earlier, they should pull out of the MDA if they are not comfortable,” he said, referring to the war of words between the BJP and other constituents of the coalition, primarily NPP.
Trouble within the coalition started when the state BJP flagged large-scale corruption under the special assistance grant in the GHADC and the JHADC.
The state government was unhappy with the BJP for making the issue public before any discussion with its coalition partners. The BJP has not yet filed any official complaint about the alleged corruption.
Accusing the state government of being indifferent to the corruption charges, the state BJP had demanded an independent probe into the alleged scam. The state government responded by ordering a five-year audit of the GHADC starting from 2015.
Not content with merely flagging the alleged corruption in the two councils, the BJP decided to file an RTI on the status of all centrally-sponsored schemes and NDA’s flagship programmes in the state. The party also approached the Meghalaya Lokayukta over the alleged misappropriation of central funds.
The BJP also targeted the government for illegal mining and transportation of coal, demanding a CBI probe into a “coal cartel” operating in the state.
Members of the MDA coordination committee discussed the issue with the BJP Parliamentary Party but the meeting was inconclusive.
