SHILLONG, April 24: Some disgruntled leaders have slammed the state BJP leadership over the Lok Sabha poll strategy, indicating the party’s support for the NPP in Meghalaya may have backfired.
They said the BJP’s central leadership decided not to contest the elections in Meghalaya as there are many tainted leaders in the state unit of the party.
They also doubted if the party workers obeyed the diktat to canvass for the NPP candidates as they did not receive any logistical support from the state party president, Rikman G Momin and his team.
The NPP is reportedly worried after a post-poll assessment revealed its friendship with the BJP could make it tough for its two candidates, especially Agatha Sangma in Tura, to win.
Cabinet minister and NPP leader, Rakkam A Sangma said recently that their party never sought the BJP’s support in Meghalaya while criticising the opposition parties for misleading the voters in this regard.
However, it was seen that the NPP national president and Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma openly sought votes in the areas dominated by the non-tribals in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The BJP also held public meetings in Shillong asking people to vote for the NPP to strengthen Modi’s chances of retaining power for a third term.
BJP spokesperson Mariahom Kharkrang, however, said he does not believe in the theory that the BJP’s support could be counterproductive for the NPP.
“If the NPP wins, will the opposition say it won because of BJP support?” he asked.
He also said the BJP is unnecessarily targeted for having tainted leaders in Meghalaya.
“There are cases of opposition party leaders winning the Assembly elections despite being charge-sheeted in some cases,” he added.
He denied the allegations that the BJP workers were not provided with logistics to campaign for the NPP’s candidates from Shillong and Tura.
BJP votes to determine poll outcome
Kharkrang also made it clear that the BJP vote bank will play a crucial role in the outcome of the Lok Sabha results in the state.
“The BJP vote bank will play a crucial role provided the voting percentage is high among the non-tribal and the BJP strongholds,” he said.
Giving his post-poll analysis, Kharkrang said, “In Shillong seat, the fight will be between NPP, VPP and Congress and in Garo Hills it will be between NPP and Congress.”
