Shillong, Sept 16: There is no doubt for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that eight or nine United Democratic Party (UDP) MLAs will join the saffron party, according to Pynthorumkhrah legislator Alexander Lalool Hek.
Hek, one of only two BJP MLAs in the Assembly at present, said that he had met Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who is also a senior BJP figure, “and he spoke clearly that this is a certainty.”
The rebel UDP MLAs had certain preconditions and the BJP was willing to give them its full support.
The assurances covered issues arising from coal mining, inclusion of Khasi in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, implementation of the Meghalaya Residents Safety and Security Act (MRSSA) and relocation of the residents of Them Iew Mawlong.
“These are the issues on which they have given clear assurances that they will fulfil them before the 2028 assembly elections. This is the reason that convinced me to join the BJP,” Khliehriat MLA Kyrmen Shylla said at a public meeting today.
He also warned that the MLAs would have no hesitation in quitting the BJP if they felt “betrayed” when it came to the implementation of their demands.
