Social media turns into poll campaign ground

SHILLONG, Oct 20: In a world where the Internet and social media have become an important tool for people to express themselves, politicians in Meghalaya, in view of the political fervour that has picked up in the poll-bound state, have been taking full advantage of the same by spreading word and showcasing their work for the people.
At present, a huge chunk of political leaders in Meghalaya including MLAs and almost all ministers have become very active on social media — be it Twitter, Facebook or WhatsApp.
Eyeing to capitalise on the reach of social media, politicians have opted to campaign for themselves using the internet too.
Some of the politician names who are using different kinds of social media platforms are Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, who is active on Facebook and Twitter, and CM’s brother James Sangma too.
Another one in the list is Ampareen Lyngdoh.
Similarly, names such as Marcuise Marak, Mukul Sangma, Charles Pyngrope, Wailadmiki Shylla, Zenith Sangma, Kyrmen Shylla, and Lahkmen Rymbui among others are also seen on social media platforms.
Not only candidates, political giants like the Bharatiya Janata Party, Congress, Trinamool Congress, National People’s Party among others can also be found on social media with their respective accounts/handles communicating to the masses with the click of a button.
This time around, it is learnt that some political parties are collaborating with different digital marketing agencies to disseminate information.
These agencies seem to have been looking at Meghalaya with business prospects ahead of the elections.