Indecision appears to be the Achilles heel of the regional parties. They are cogitating on who will form the next government in 2018. The indecision stems from a lack of self confidence. They know they cannot muster the required numbers to form the next government and are unsure who to align with after the election results are out. Why have the regional parties failed to capture the imagination of the voters in Meghalaya? Why are they second best and have nearly always had to align with national parties? This predicament should have sent them into a retrospective mood. They should be going out to feel the pulse of the voters as a party and not as individual MLAs seeking re-election. But this daunting task does not seem to be a priority for the UDP leadership. Is it an intrinsically cultural flaw that regional party unity is only a fig leaf that hides the inherent disunity that baffles a particular society? It has been said in the past that national parties are cohesive because there is a centrifugal force – a high command – to hold even the most headstrong members together. In the case of the regional parties there is a distinct lack of respect for the leader since every member believes he is best placed to lead the party. They are not entirely at fault. Leaders stand out and are able to provide leadership. They don’t vacillate at crucial junctures in the life of the party.
The UDP’s stance vis-à-vis Meira Kumar the presidential candidate put up by the Congress can at best be understood as schizophrenic. While the UDP President, Donkupar Roy has, as claimed by Ms Kumar assured her of his Party’s support, he has been rather coy in stating this upfront to the media and is simply buying time. Critics have repeatedly alleged that the UDP is the Team B of the Congress. This allegation is proving to be a reality since the UDP now appears to have decided to stick by the Congress party candidate even though she is unlikely to win the race to Rashtrapati Bhavan and is merely putting up a principled fight.
