The Trinamool Congress (TMC) unit in Meghalaya is run by the state party’s leaders and is not controlled from Kolkata, party supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said here today.
Other national parties, such as the Congress Party and BJP, are often criticised for the way decisions are made in New Delhi rather than at the local level but Banerjee said that she does not and will not interfere in the selection of candidates for next year’s Meghalaya election.
She said this at a press conference on the last day of her two-day visit to the state.
When responding to a query if the TMC will contest all 60 Assembly seats, Banerjee first consulted with TMC Meghalaya leaders Dr Mukul Sangma and Charles Pyngrope before responding to the query.
“Yes, the Meghalaya party’s decision is that we will contest all 60 seats. We will not interfere in their decision. They will handle and decide it. The Chief Ministerial face will be announced once the elections are announced,” Banerjee said.
Meanwhile, on implementing the Inner Line Permit (ILP), Banerjee tried to steer a middle path, which could be very unpopular in Meghalaya.
Describing ILP as a sensitive issue, she said that if the TMC forms the government it “will set up an expert committee and it will take decisions”.
All 12 TMC legislators (before they had defected from the Congress) had voted in favour of a resolution for ILP in December 2019.
The visiting CM also urged the electorate not to give into money power before casting their votes next year. Responding to a question, Banerjee said that she strongly condemns money power but believes in democratic power. She also claimed that the MDA government has done nothing to tackle inflation.
