BJP’s decision to campaign for NPP in Meghalaya hits state unit hard

BJP is a minor partner in the ruling coalition in Meghalaya which is headed by NPP. Significantly, the BJP put up candidates for the Shillong and Tura seats in 2014 and 2019. Though they lost in both the elections, the party had cornered 9.2% of the total votes in 2014. In 2019, the vote share dropped to 8%.

The announcement by the saffron party not to contest the Lok Sabha polls in Meghalaya has shocked BJP ticket aspirants for the two parliamentary seats even though it has boosted NPP candidates, Ampareen Lyngdoh and Agatha Sangma, who are contesting from Shillong and Tura seats respectively.

The BJP ticket aspirants for the Shillong seat include cabinet minister Alexander L. Hek, former state party president Ernest Mawrie, Fenela Lyngdoh Nonglait, state BJYM president Mewaker Lyngdoh and BJP national executive member Sumitra Laloo.

The ticket aspirants for the Tura seat include sitting Tura MDC Bernard N. Marak, and former MLAs Winnerson. Sangma and K C Boro, former MDC Boston Marak, Riya Sangma and Thomas Marak.

However, the decision by the central leadership of the BJP not to put up candidates for the Lok Sabha polls in Meghalaya appeared to show that the party wanted to reciprocate the recent decision by the NPP to back the BJP in Arunachal Pradesh, party leaders said.

NPP is part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre and is also a constituent of the North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), the BJP-led platform of anti-Congress regional parties in the northeast. Apart from supporting BJP candidates in the two Lok Sabha seats in Arunachal Pradesh, NPP has also extended support to the ruling Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) candidate for the lone seat in Nagaland.

Pressure is now mounting on Rikman G. Momin, the BJP Meghalaya unit president, to quit in acknowledgement of his “failure” to convince the party’s central leadership to contest the two Lok Sabha seats in Meghalaya.

Leaders and workers of the BJP, especially in the Garo Hills region comprising the western half of Meghalaya, feel that their hard work over the years “went to waste” when the party decided not to field candidates for the Shillong and Tura constituencies and to support the candidates of the National People’s Party (NPP) instead.

AL Hek who is a minister in the NPP-led coalition government in Meghalaya and aspirant for ticket from Shillong, said, “You see the BJP is also looking out for all its NDA partners throughout the country like they’ve done in Manipur and elsewhere.”

He admitted that the Shillong seat seemed viable after all the labour and toil of all party karyakartas. “Why they missed this golden opportunity remains unexplained, but we will follow the top leadership’s desire,” adding, “Now they (karyakartas) are wondering how they will go next time to seek votes for the party.”

“The state unit is utterly dismayed at this decision by the central leadership. The karyakartas are disillusioned. Especially in Garo hills, they are saying we have been campaigning against the NPP, now going to seek votes for it is a herculean task, especially after the top leaders of the party have publicly called it the most corrupt party and the most corrupt government in the country. It is a total sale of their conscience,” senior member of the party Arnab Das, the BJP Meghalaya spokesperson said.

Retired Pro Vice Chancellor of the North Eastern Hill University (NEHU), Eugene D. Thomas said, "They (BJP) are scared about their numbers. Therefore, they really want to concentrate in places where they have 50/50 percent or more chances of winning. In places where they know they are definitely losing they don’t want to waste time and energy.” Former Meghalaya deputy director of information and public relations, and former editor of Dongmusa, a popular weekly newspaper, Billy P Domes said, “It's all because there is no loyalty in politics here, and for that matter in the entire northeast. Political parties always get swayed by the Centre. When it was the Congress, they all ran towards it. Now it's the BJP, they’re all clamouring for it. No thought for the people. Just plain selfish interest. That’s the way I see it”.