SHILLONG, AUG 19: In a significant political shift in Meghalaya, two suspended Congress legislators, Charles Marngar (Mawhati) and Gabriel Wahlang (Nongstoin), along with Congress MLA Dr. Celestine Lyngdoh (Umsning), officially merged with the National People’s Party (NPP) on Monday. This move has bolstered the NPP’s strength in the 60-member Meghalaya Legislative Assembly, securing a majority with 31 seats, thereby solidifying the Conrad Sangma-led government’s position.
Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma hailed the merger as a historic milestone, expressing his gratitude to the new members and underscoring the importance of their decision to join the NPP. He emphasized that the NPP’s growth from humble beginnings to a major political force is a testament to the party’s commitment to the state’s development and the quality of its members.
“With the joining and merging of our three friends from the Congress, today the strength of the NPP stands at 31 MLAs in the State Legislative Assembly, which, as mentioned, is an absolute majority,” Sangma stated.
He added that this development reinforces the party’s commitment to serving the people and advancing the state’s progress.
Sangma highlighted the humble beginnings of the NPP and expressed optimism about the future, given the caliber of individuals now aligning with the party.
“The NPP started with a very humble beginning, and today, to see not just the galaxy of people who are here with us but, more importantly, the quality of the people who are with us, gives me a lot of hope for the future of our party as well as the future of our state,” he said.
While, addressing allegations made by Congress chief Vincent H. Pala that the NPP used illegal money to lure Congress MLAs, Sangma firmly denied these claims.
He stressed that the decision to merge with the NPP was based purely on developmental goals for the respective constituencies of the MLAs, rather than personal gains or financial incentives.
“I don’t want to comment on such derogatory remarks, but this decision and understanding were reached purely on the basis of developmental aspects of the constituencies,” he clarified.
Asked, the NPP national chief that the three Congress MLAs have merged with the party without any conditions.
Sangma also emphasized that there were no conditions attached to the merger. “The MLAs have been very clear that they are not joining the party for any personal gains or positions. They are here purely to discuss the development of their constituencies,” he noted, adding that the NPP would seek to utilize the expertise and experience of the new members for the benefit of both the party and the state.
“As I said of course there are two aspects, one is at the party level and one is at the government level. Number one, we have been very clear that and the MLAs have also been very clear that they are not coming into the party for any personal gains or any kind of personal positions and hence before we started with the discussion that they had outrightly told me that we will not talk anything about our personal gains or positions, we are here purely to discuss about the constituencies and the developmental packages. So therefore, there is no condition being laid by them,” he said.
“I am very thankful to them that they have come in with no personal condition at all whether it is financial or any kind of power or position nothing of this sort it was purely on the basis of the desire to really see that their constituencies move forward. I am very impressed with that and that’s the reason why I have gone all the way to ensure that I will work with them to take their constituencies forward,” he said.
The defection of these MLAs is seen as a major setback for the Congress, which has struggled to maintain its influence in the state.
The Congress had suspended Wahlang and Marngar on August 16 for anti-party activities, possibly as a strategic move to invoke the anti-defection law, which could have led to their disqualification.
Despite these efforts, all three legislators chose to merge with the NPP, highlighting internal dissent and further weakening the Congress’s hold in Meghalaya.