Shillong, Nov 3: The United Democratic Party (UDP) has withdrawn support to the Conrad Sangma-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government, days after its president Metbah Lyngdoh resigned as minister.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the UDP’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) on Tuesday, which reviewed the recent political developments that have left the regional party with just one legislator in the 60-member Assembly.
“The CEC has unanimously decided that once the president and lone MLA as minister has resigned from the ministry, we have decided to withdraw our support from the government,” UDP general secretary Titosstarwell Chyne said.
Clarifying that Lyngdoh’s resignation on October 31 was voluntary, Chyne said, “Our president on his own decided to submit his resignation on Saturday after consultation. He felt that it was the right thing to do. We respect his decision.”
The development, however, will not have any impact on the government. The NPP alone has 36 MLAs in the House, while the BJP has 10.
“NPP alone has 36 MLAs and with the support of HSPDP and others, they have good numbers to run the government. So, the government will be stable,” Chyne said.
The UDP’s decision came weeks after 11 of its 12 MLAs switched sides. Eight MLAs merged with the BJP in September, while three others, including Paul Lyngdoh who was sworn in as minister on Monday, joined the NPP last month. The Assembly Speaker subsequently recognised both mergers, reducing UDP’s strength from 12 to one.
The roots of the present crisis can be traced to the September 2025 cabinet reshuffle, when party president Metbah Lyngdoh recommended removal of Paul Lyngdoh and Kyrmen Shylla from the cabinet, triggering resentment.
The party, a constituent of MDA since 2018, had won six seats in 2018 and increased its tally to 12 in 2023, emerging as the second-largest party.
Ruling out any setback, Chyne said, “There is no setback for the party. We have taken this decision with one mind. This is not a setback, this is a new beginning for us.”
“We will now reorganise, go to the people, go to constituencies where we have no MLA, no MDC. We will strengthen the party from the grassroots,” he added.
