SHILLONG, Sep 4: Rajya Sabha member and National People’s Party (NPP) state president, WR Kharlukhi on Sunday said the BJP’s threat to pull out of the MDA government was a farce.
He also asked the BJP’s national vice-president and Meghalaya in-charge, M Chuba Ao whether he admitted that his party uses the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to settle political scores.
“The threat of the BJP is like crying wolf. They said the same thing some six months ago. We will wait and see,” Kharlukhi said.
Ao had on Saturday said the state BJP may withdraw its support from the MDA coalition within a month and is gathering evidence of illegalities and corruption to set the ED and CBI after them.
“With regard to Ao’s statement on bringing the ED and CBI, I did not know these two organs of the government are working for the BJP. I don’t know whether it is the right statement to be given by a party in-charge,” the MP said.
“Ao himself has proven what the other political parties like Congress are saying – that BJP is using the ED and the CBI for political purposes,” he said.
Kharlukhi said the threat would have been justified had it come from Union Home Minister Amit Shah. “But a BJP leader saying this indicates a confused state of mind,” he added.
Questioning the BJP’s motive in targeting the NPP, he said: “They will never come to power (in Meghalaya) without the NPP. It is only NPP that can help them be in a government. You take it from me, it is a political reality.”
He doubted whether the BJP could manage to better the two seats it won in the 2018 Assembly elections.
Pointed out that the BJP has cited rampant charges of corruption and irregularities of the NPP-led MDA government as the motive behind the threat to withdraw support, Kharlukhi said, “What is stopping the BJP and also the TMC from filing an FIR or going to the court?”
Just talking about corruption and illegal activities is nothing but hoodwinking the public, he said while offering to be grilled as the state party chief if the BJP has any evidence against the NPP.
Kharlukhi also asked Ao to clarify what he meant by saying no party can form the government in Meghalaya without the BJP.
“During Indira Gandhi’s time, the opposition blamed Congress for using power to topple governments in the states. I don’t know if they have that in mind,” he said.
‘Not the first time’
Spokesperson of NPP’s youth wing, National People Youth Front (NPYF), Bajop Pyngrope has said that this is not the first time that the BJP has threatened to withdraw support. “This is not the first time that BJP has threatened to withdraw from the government. But they continue to remain with the ruling coalition. The saying ‘barking dog seldom bites’ is best suited with the BJP,” Pyngrope told The Shillong Times while reacting to Chuba Ao’s statement.
Stating that the BJP is playing its card with few months left for the elections, Pyngrope said, “Now, the saffron party is threatening to pull out when they have enjoyed being a part of the government for the past four and half years.”
Pyngrope, who is also the NPP MDC in the KHADC, even took a jibe at Chuba Ao over his claim that no government can be formed without the saffron party’s support.
“The NPP is going to form the government on its own. We are targeting to win more than 30 seats. This is going to happen seeing the support of the people,” Pyngrope said.
Earlier, Ao said that the party cannot dictate or request the NPP. “But without BJP, the next government will not be formed,” the BJP leader had said.