SHILLONG, April 17: Chief Minister, Conrad K Sangma on Saturday said the MLAs in the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) are opposed to the demand for the removal of Power Minister, James Sangma.
He said they have told him that it is not possible for them to look into the demand.
“All the MLAs have already stated that there is no question of removing James Sangma. It is not my statement; all the Cabinet ministers and the MLAs in the MDA have said it,” the CM said.
Admitting that there could be issues of concerns, he said, “We will certainly discuss how we can resolve the existing issues. There could be a demand tomorrow to remove another minister. So, if such demands keep coming, how we will run the government”.
Stating that this is not how governance works, Sangma said, “There is the MDA coordination committee and we have discussed it (demand for James’ ouster) with the MLAs and they are very clear about it”.
He said the MDA does not mind sitting with the leaders of the coalition partners and address concerns and issues, if required. “We will resolve the issues. We have done it in the past and we will keep doing so,” he asserted.
Earlier, United Democratic Party (UDP) general secretary, Jemino Mawthoh had written to the CM demanding the ouster of James and Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) CMD, Arunkumar Kembhavi.
In his letter, Mawthoh had pointed out that the unprecedented load-shedding in the state was affecting normal life.
However, the very next day, UDP president, Metbah Lyngdoh stated that he was unaware of the decision taken by the party. The party MLAs also said they were not consulted and wondered how it could be a decision of the party.