VPP ‘not a threat’ to RDA candidate

SHILLONG, Jan 23: Robertjune Kharjahrin, the RDA’s common candidate for the Shillong Lok Sabha seat, denied on Tuesday that the Voice of the People Party (VPP) posed a threat to his chances of winning the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Kharjahrin, however, declared that he would not undervalue any of his rivals, saying, “I am a regional minded person and respect all the regional parties including the VPP but I feel that the combination of the UDP and HSPDP has a better chance at winning the Shillong seat.”
He emphasised that the UDP-HSPDP coalition has more MLAs and MDCs than the VPP and that their vote share is higher.
“I implore VPP supporters to abstain from voting for the VPP candidate, as doing so will ultimately divide the regional votes,” Kharjahrin said, urging them to support the RDA in the polls.
“Since we are regional forces, the majority of our problems are similar, whether they relate to boundaries, ILP, or even clean governance. Since the VPP also recognises that we have better prospects if the regional forces are required to win the Shillong parliamentary seat, let’s attempt to unite into one,” he stated.
When asked whether NPP candidate and Cabinet Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh should be disqualified from running because there will be abuse of power during the campaign, the RDA common candidate responded that there is no constitutional clause prohibiting a state minister from running in any election.
“She (Ampareen) is free to run in both the district council elections and the Lok Sabha elections. Since they are aware that the government will need to spend at least Rs 5 crore to hold the bye-election, I don’t think the public will support her,” Kharjahrin stated, while adding that the funds could be used to help the people.