SHILLONG: Similarities are many in the oust campaign against two leaders, who are at the helm of affairs in the State.
The predicament Chief Minister Dr Mukul Sangma, and Chief Executive Member of KHADC Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit face is that they are accused of taking decisions alone without proper consultations.
While the Congress dissidents are waiting for a final word from Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Mukul, the UDP a coalition partner in KHADC has already conveyed its stand for a change of leadership.
The basic issue in both cases centers around the alleged ‘autocratic’ dealings of both the leaders.
The allegation against the Chief Minister by the dissidents is that he remains inaccessible as MLAs are not able to meet him.
The concerns of the legislators are that the CLP meeting is not convened very often to address the grievances of the legislators especially on the implementation of various schemes. The pattern is that when any AICC leader visits Shillong, the CLP meeting is convened.
While the Chief Minister taking away development schemes to Ampati, his home constituency is another concern, the worsening law and order situation is also another agenda of the opponents.
A former chief minister recently said that when he was the Chief Minister , he used to call frequent CLP meetings which helped in solving many problems which the legislators face in their constituencies. “In CLP you have the Chief Minister and the council of ministers and the legislators can discuss the progress of schemes for their constituencies with them”, he said.
In the same way, the allegations of the UDP MDCs are that they are being sidelined by Basaiawmoit.
The specific allegations against Ardent are that he had taken several decisions on his own without consulting other Executive Members (EMs) in the EC which included the decision to declare the pine forest at Mawpat as protected forest (Law Adong) and the appointment of the standing counsel of the Council, among others.
Interestingly, it is reported that both Chief Minister and KHADC CEM share a good rapport.
Recently, a group of media persons saw Basaiawmoit coming out of the chamber of Chief Minister after he quietly went to meet him during the HNLC sponsored bandh opposing the decision of the NGT to ban coal mining in the State.
The KHADC CEM, however, had maintained it was a courtesy visit.
