SHILLONG, April 16: Despite not winning a single seat in the GHADC elections, the United Democratic Party (UDP) has found solace in increasing their seat share, making inroads into Garo Hills region for the Assembly polls scheduled for 2023.
“We could not get a single seat but from the vote share point of view, we have made inroads in the region. Of course, the prospects look better for us in the 2023 Assembly polls,” UDP president Metbah Lyngdoh said on Friday.
He, however, said that the UDP was optimistic of opening an account considering the response they received albeit stepping into Garo Hills and contesting elections after a gap of many years. “We increased our vote share even though we could not manage to get a single seat,” he said.
Stating that the UDP, as a party, needs to arrive to a conclusion as to why could they not sail through, Metbah said, “We were very confident with regard to two or three constituencies, and why we could not secure a seat is something I cannot say now as we have not come to a conclusion”.
“The review and analysis of the reason for us not getting a single seat in Garo Hills is on and we have to go into details of it,” he added.
Asked if the UDP being labelled as a Khasi party had an impact, the UDP president said, “What I have heard and seen is that the statement ‘UDP is a Khasi party and not a Garo party’ was used as a platform to disallow people from Garo Hills to vote for UDP”.
He, however, maintained that it could be one of the many reasons, adding that it is crucial for them to get to the details of it. “Once we meet all friends from Garo Hills, we will sit down and come to a conclusion so that we know what the steps are that need to be taken keeping in mind the Assembly elections,” he added.
The UDP had contested in 18 of the 29 seats in the GHADC and were expecting to win 1-5 seats. The party was, however, left disappointed.