So serious was the need to address the damning allegation that Sniawbhalang Dhar, Deputy Chief Minister of Meghalaya, chose to call a rare Sunday press conference to answer the charge that he had provided funding to the banned Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC).
It was exactly a week ago that the militant group had made the sensational claim that Dhar, while a member of the Congress Party some years ago, had funded the HNLC but now, as a top figure in the National People’s Party (NPP), had cut off the money.
Although the timeline was not specified, the allegation appears to go back to a time before 2018 as that was the year that Dhar quit the Congress in favour of the NPP.
Dhar has been out of town for several weeks and wasted no time in taking on the claims head-on after returning to Shillong.
Vehemently denying the allegation, which he termed “totally false and baseless”, he said that the HNLC statement was politically motivated to malign his image.
So far, two opposition parties, the Voice of the People Party (VPP) and Congress, have called for an independent probe and Dhar’s resignation. His colleagues in government, meanwhile, have been quiet or downright evasive when asked a direct question on the subject.
Dhar ruled out quitting his post, saying that it is in the nature of opposition parties to demand investigations and resignations even without a shred of evidence.
Appealing to the people, he said, “Please remember, the more they want to spread negativity against me, God will bless me, my party and the government because I am here to serve my people sincerely. We are here to protect the people, the state and the country as a whole. We are your leaders, please trust us because all these are baseless allegations.”
When asked about taking legal action, Dhar said he would consider filing an FIR if he finds out who is really behind the allegations, which he insisted are political based on the reaction of the opposition parties.
