Congress nominees Vincent Pala and Saleng Sangma file nominations in Shillong and Tura, respectively
SHILLONG/TURA, March 26: State Congress chief and party’s Shillong candidate, Vincent H Pala on Tuesday said the BJP betrayed its workers by opting out of the Lok Sabha elections in the state even as he said every vote cast in favour of the National People’s Party (NPP) will essentially be a vote for the BJP. The same day, party nominee Saleng A Sangma also filed his nomination for the Tura seat.
Interestingly, Congress leader Manuel Badwar also filed his nomination as a back-up candidate for the Lok Sabha election from Shillong seat.
A party source said this is a normal procedure among the national parties.
He said that a similar practice was also followed during the last Lok Sabha elections.
The back-up candidate will withdraw his nomination after the scrutiny of nomination papers, the party source said.
Talking to media persons after filing his nomination papers, Pala expressed optimism about garnering the votes of BJP workers and supporters.
“The BJP votes will not go to NPP but they will come to me,” he said confidently.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target of 400 seats for the National Democratic Alliance but Pala predicted that the BJP will suffer in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.
He said the BJP is eyeing 370 seats as it wants to change the Constitution of India. He said if the party manages to reach that mark, it will immediately remove the word “secularism” from the Constitution.
Alleging that the BJP’s aim is to make India a Hindu State, he said if this happens, every other place of worship will become illegal. He said in contrast, the Congress wants a peaceful country for all citizens.
Attacking other parties which are going after him, Pala claimed these parties are fighting the polls on communal lines. He said some want to divide the Khasis and the Garos, while some others want to divide the Christians and the non-Christians.
He said he will win the elections riding on the Congress’ ideology which is the most acceptable.
According to him, another factor that he believes will work in his favour is that people find national parties more reliable than regional parties for taking up regional issues. He cited that regional parties have limitations in Delhi.
Pala also stated that NPP candidate, Ampareen Lyngdoh is probably under some pressure from the BJP and the CBI to speak against him.
Ampareen had recently stated that she is quite familiar with the Congress turf and is ready to unseat Pala in the coming Lok Sabha elections.
Stating that Ampareen had previously campaigned all over Khasi-Jaintia Hills for him and had even praised him on several occasions, Pala added that the CBI and the BJP may have forced her to speak against him.
“Sometimes when somebody is under the CBI radar they may have to speak and act in a manner which they don’t mean in reality. You know sometimes you mean what you don’t talk and sometimes you talk what you don’t mean. I don’t want to comment on this issue,” he added.
Saleng Sangma files nomination in Tura
The Congress’ Tura candidate Saleng A Sangma also filed his nomination papers on Tuesday. He was accompanied by former Deputy Chief Minister Deborah Marak and former MLA Brigady Marak among others.
Later, Saleng told reporters the Congress will fight alleged atrocities and harassment being meted out to minority communities in the country.
“Everybody can see what is happening in the country,” he said citing Manipur, Uttarakhand and Assam.
He said people are agitating against Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and Uniform Civil Code and there is no peace at all. He said the Congress and other parties collaborating with it will bring peace and development in the region.
Reacting to Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma’s recent statement that CAA will not impact Meghalaya, Saleng said why the people of the state should accept the CM’s statement when the larger and more literate states are opposing the contentious law.
“He is a part and parcel of CAA. Moreover, his sister Agatha has already supported it. Since she has supported it, he has to defend her. Look, Shillong falls under CAA, Tura falls under the CAA. How can you deny the obvious? Since CAA in itself is a controversial law, people cannot accept it,” Saleng said.
To a query, he said the Congress will raise the issue of alleged discrimination against minorities by the BJP during the elections. He said it was evident from the BJP’s decision to not contest that there is no difference between the saffron party and the NPP.
“They are saying they will change India into Hindustan. They have also moved for the implementation of CAA. The NPP has gone side by side with the BJP on many issues. So, I don’t see any difference between the NPP and the BJP,” Saleng said, adding the Congress will also raise the issue of alleged persecution of minorities.
Asked about Agatha’s performance as the Tura MP, he said people are the best judge.