Despite having the numbers, National People’s Party (NPP) supremo Conrad K Sangma did not want to launch the second iteration of the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government without all the old partners onboard.
With the NPP winning 26 seats in the recent election and with two independents, two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs and two from the Hill State People’s Democratic Party (HSPDP), the government had a majority in the 60-member Assembly.
And even though the United Democratic Party (UDP), the second biggest party with 11 MLAs, and People’s Democratic Front (PDF) had explored the option of forming a non-NPP government, Sangma today said that he wanted both parties to be in the government. On Sunday, the UDP and PDF dutifully followed suit.
The Chief Minister designate, who will be sworn in on Tuesday, added that ditching allies when they are not required would reduce the level of trust in the NPP and that is why he approached the UDP and PDF personally.
“I appealed to them saying that we have worked as a team in the past. I know that the numbers are there. But as a matter of principle, I would like to take everybody along because we went through thick and thin together (in the previous government). We had a lot of challenges but yet we stuck together and I don’t forget these kinds of things,” he stated, though he noted how the UDP, BJP and others attacked the NPP relentlessly in their election campaigns.
“Let us start (the new government) in a positive way. Let us overcome all of this. There’s a lot of work to be done. The election is over now. The mandate has been given. Let us now be very mature about it and let’s deliver to the people more than they expected,” Sangma said.
