Giving a boost to the National People’s Party (NPP) in Meghalaya, three of the total four Congress MLAs on Monday joined the ruling party, taking the party’s tally to 31 in the 60-member assembly. The NPP has now secured a majority on its own in Meghalaya, where it is in a coalition government with other parties like the UDP and the BJP.
The opposition Congress now has only one MLA left in its kitty, Leader of Opposition RV Lyngdoh. The ruling coalition now has 47 MLAs. Sources said former state Congress president Dr Celestine Lyngdoh, Gabriel Wahlang and Charles Marnagar met Assembly Speaker Thomas A Sangma and informed him of their decision to join the NPP.
In an order, the Assembly Speaker said, “These three members constitute two-thirds of the Congress Legislative Party in the Meghalaya Assembly….” He said they will be allotted seats in the Assembly as members of the NPP. The Congress has suspended Wahlang and Marnagar from the party for six years. NPP president and Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma welcomed the three into the party.
“Our role as the government is to ensure maximum development for the people of Meghalaya. We have set clear goals for the next decade and we are working to achieve them. We welcome all those who want to be a part of the success story,” the chief minister told PTI.
He said their joining reflects the party’s impressive development agenda, which will take everyone along and work towards making the state a more developed state by 2032. Apart from the 31 NPP MLAs, ruling coalition constituents UDP have 12 members in the House, HSPDP has two and BJP has two members. Opposition Trinamool Congress has five MLAs, VPP has four and Congress has one member. There are also two independent MLAs in the House. One seat is vacant in the Assembly.