By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Nov 29: Former MLA and NPP spokesperson HM Shangpliang acknowledged on Wednesday that when he joined the party, he was not given any guarantee by the leadership that he would be given the Lok Sabha ticket for the Shillong parliamentary seat.
Concurrently, Shangpliang acknowledged that he was a candidate for the party ticket that Ampareen Lyngdoh, the cabinet minister, was given.
“Since I had joined the party without any strings attached, there was no such assurance. I am here to serve the party and I want to make sure that the party grows,” he said.
Shangpliang claimed that there is no animosity since Ampareen was chosen to receive the ticket by state president, Prestone Tynsong and national president, Conrad K Sangma.
“I will be working harder to ensure that Dr. Ampareen Lyngdoh comes out victorious as the MP from the NPP,” he said.
Declaring his intention to stay in the party, he stated that he will keep contributing more to it.
In response to the question of whether he believes that losing out on the ticket is a political setback for him, he insists that there isn’t.
“Every party that has a higher number of candidates running for office is in good standing. We have to accept it in a healthy way. There is no setback because we could be candidates tomorrow even though we are aspirants today,” he said, making it clear that he would not be contesting the MDC election.