By HH Mohrmen
In Meghalaya, every election sees the rise of new political parties and the fall of others. It is no surprise that as the state sees the closing of the final chapter of one regional party, it also witnesses the rise of a new regional party in the state’s political horizon. The newly formed party is now recognized by the Election Commission as a State party. It took the months-old party just one election to achieve the feat which the other regional parties have not been able to do for many years. Political pundits opined that the party led by Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit would have been able to perform well had it begun its campaign a bit earlier. But the question that begs the answer is whether the State is witnessing the rise of a new regional force that could change the political landscape in Meghalaya. That only time will tell.
A party with a difference
VPP is projecting itself as a party with a difference, a party with a clean image. Except for the two leaders, the other candidates who contested on the party tickets are all fresh candidates and most at least have one university degree. The other factor that differentiates the VPP from the others is that it did not indulge in extravagant expenditure during the last election. All the party’s candidates contested the last election after spending very little money to woo voters. The party has been able to do well because Ardent has at least given the people a new hope which they have been waiting for so long. It is also true that at least Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit the leader of the party, is consistent in his efforts to clean politics in the state. He had earlier started a clean politics campaign in Meghalaya, but for reasons best known only to him, he stopped the campaign midway. This time too, keeping his stand intact he fought against the candidate perhaps with the biggest bank balance and won the election by spending little money during the election. Others are also saying that one may fall several times on one’s journey but what is important is that one does not abandon the principle that one stands for. This is the same story with all the VPP candidates, irrespective of whether they win or lose. The fact is that they spent very little or no money contesting the election. Is the VPP the change that people of Meghalaya have been waiting for? That’s a million-dollar question.
Is it the symbol or the party’s election song?
Can the party symbol be another factor that helps the VPP strike a chord with the common people? It is clear that the symbol chosen by the VPP also stands for the party’s principle to clean politics in the state. U Prah is not only a traditional apparatus that people use regularly as a winnow but it is also relevant to the party’s stand to clean corruption in the state. It is sheer coincidence that the party’s election song is also a hit with both young and old, men and women. It is perhaps the most liked, most viewed, and most shared party election song today. But the Party’s symbol and the election can contribute very little to the party’s gaining popularity in the region. There are certainly other factors like striking the right chord with the people that helps the Party gain the support of the majority of people in the Khasi Jaintia region of the state.
Party striking the right chord
The VPP entered the House in style and with a bang; the four members of the legislative assembly’s maiden appearance in the august house has even attracted national interest as the language issue is not only a Meghalaya-specific issue. The video of the four MLAs protesting against the governor addressing the house in Hindi has not only got the support of the local Meghalayans, but the video footage of the member’s walkout of the House to protest the alleged imposition of a language on the people went viral. Of course, the government may argue that an English version of the address was shared with the members beforehand, but the fact of the matter is that the speech in the House is not intended to address the members of the assembly only, but the public at large. The protest against the governor addressing the house in Hindi is symbolic because it resonates with the public at large who can barely understand the language for no fault of theirs. The Chief Minister and a few of his cabinet colleagues may be fluent in Hindi and have a good command over the language, but the question is what percentage of the general population in the state understands Hindi?
The VPP’s position on the state reservation policy and roster system also has the support of the general public, and many pressure groups have extended support to the Party on the issue. But the flip side of this is that the VPP’s position on the issue is putting the Party at odds with the other section of the population in the State. Is this something that the VPP is willing to sacrifice, is another pertinent question.
Challenges for the party
The immediate challenge which could also turn out to be an opportunity for the VPP to showcase its strength is the ensuing MDC election to the district councils in the state. The first test is how the Party will select candidates to contest on the party ticket. Is the basis of selecting the candidates going to be on the so-called ‘winnability’ of the contender? What would ‘winnability’ mean? Is the bank balance of the candidate going to be the criteria for selection? Maybe not, because the VPP MLAs have won the election with little or no influence of money power. There will be a long queue of contenders for the VPP ticket in the coming election, so the other question is, on what basis is the Party going to allot tickets to candidates? What about veteran politicians who had contested or won on other party tickets? Will the VPP allot tickets to such candidates?
VPP MLAs will remain united in the State Assembly but it could be a different story at the District Councils. The Party may win all the seats in the respective Councils, but cannot ensure that the MDCs will remain committed to it because the anti-defection law is not operative in the ADCs. How can the party keep its flock together when the 10th Schedule of the Constitution 52nd amendment Act or the anti-defection law is inapplicable in the ADCs? These are some of the immediate challenges that one can foresee that the VPP could encounter in the near future.
The Party for the 36 seats only
The VPP has been blamed to be pro-Khasi or pro-Hynñew Trep people. The question is whether the VPP can afford to be a Khasi-Jaintia party only? As of today it seems that the allegations against the party being pro-Khasi Jaintia region are not unfounded. If that is the case then the party is only repeating the same mistake that the other regional parties like the HSPDP, the PDF, KHNAM, and even the UDP have made of not being able to have any influence in the Garo Hills. In such a situation the VPP is going to face a challenge in the next MP election as it can only contest from the Shillong parliamentary seat and have to forfeit the Tura seat. The VPP can position itself as a Party that champions the interests of the people who live in the Khasi Jaintia hills only, but in such a situation what kind of future can the Party hope for?
The other troubling question is how can the VPP expect to rule the State if it is going to contest only on the 36 constituencies in the State Legislative Assembly? How can the VPP hope to be the major regional party in Meghalaya if its influence is restricted to two of the three regions of the State only?