Congress MLAs

Shillong, Dec 20: In a poll-bound state, Meghalaya, two of the five Congress MLAs joined the ruling National People’s Party (NPP), six days after the four MLAs of different political parties joined the BJP.

Congress legislators — Mazel Ampareen Lyngdoh and Mohendro Rapsang — resigned from the Assembly after which in the evening, they joined the NPP at a ceremony, in which Chief Minister and NPP President Conrad K Sangma, Rajya Sabha MP and NPP state President WR Kharlukhi and different senior leaders had been present.

With Lyngdoh and Rapsang quitting, the Congress now has three MLAs in the 60-member Meghalaya Assembly.

The Congress earlier suspended all the five party MLAs for their hobnobbing with the NPP leadership, especially the Chief Minister. However, in the Assembly records, they are still Congress members.


Also Read: Captive-bred Asian giant Tortoise re-wilded in Nagaland to bring species back from the brink

In the 2018 Assembly election, Congress won 21 seats in Meghalaya.

Lyngdoh, in her resignation submitted to Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, said: “For the most part of my life, I have been a staunch supporter and foot soldier of the Indian National Congress. The party gave me the opportunity to serve the people of Meghalaya as a Minister and as a representative of my East Shillong constituency.”

“However, recent developments within the party have led me to believe that it has lost its sense of direction. There has been a pressing need for the party and its leadership to reflect on this. Sincere and honest attempts to lead such self-introspection, I believe, have failed.”

Lyngdoh, who is also a former minister, added: “The party has lost touch with the people of Meghalaya, and I no longer believe it is the best platform for me to serve them.”