By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Aug 30: Meghalaya TMC president Charles Pyngrope on Wednesday pitched for party vice-president George B Lyngdoh as its candidate for the Shillong Lok Sabha seat while leaving it to the parliamentary party president, Mukul M Sangma to decide on the Tura seat.
Pyngrope said the party would contest the Shillong and Tura seats but the state unit is yet to discuss the poll plan with the TMC general secretary in charge, Manas Ranjan Bhunia.
“I spoke with him this morning for a meeting. Either he will come (to Shillong) or I will go to Kolkata and finalise how to go about it,” he said.
He claimed the TMC has candidates for both the seats but the party’s high command would take the final call.
Pyngrope said that in his opinion, Lyngdoh would be the ideal candidate for the Shillong seat and felt Sangma was better equipped to zero in on the right candidate for the Tura seat comprising the Garo Hills districts.
On reports that TMC turncoat HM Shangpliang could switch to the ruling NPP from the BJP, he said: “I see nothing wrong in this.”
He said joining any party of his choice was Shangpliang’s prerogative and pointed out there is no constitutional barrier to changing parties.
For the NPP, incumbent MP Agatha Sangma is expected to seek re-election from the Tura seats. The party headed by her brother and Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma is yet to announce its candidate for the Shillong seat.
Congress, on the other hand, is pinning hopes on Vincent H Pala to retain the Shillong seat for a fourth time. The party has not named its candidate for Tura yet.
The Voice of the People Party has announced the candidature of its general secretary Ricky AJ Syngkon from the Shillong seat for the 2024 parliamentary polls.