NPP yet to announce candidate for Tura seat

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaMarch 12, 2019

SHILLONG: The ruling National People’s Party (NPP) is yet to announce its candidate for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections from the Tura parliamentary seat.

 

“The decision has not been made yet because it will be decided by the election committee,” NPP National President and Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma told reporters on Tuesday while reacting to a query on whether the NPP would again field former Tura MP Agatha K Sangma.

 

He said therefore the State Election Committee will be sending a proposal to the central election authority, which will accordingly take the final decision.

 

“…though I am part of the election authority it will not be appropriate for me at this level to say it,” Sangma said while adding that in a few days’ time, the announcement will be made on who will be contesting from which seat.

 

The Meghalaya Democratic Alliance led by the NPP has unanimously decided to field UDP leader and former Nongthymmai legislator Jemino Mawthoh as its common candidate from the Shillong parliamentary seat, being presently held by opposition Congress MP VH Pala.

 

Asked, Sangma admitted that the general body of the NPP had passed a resolution that the NPP should contest in all the 25 seats and said, “The decision is left with the Central Executive Committee and Central Election Authority and depending on the situation in each constituency we will have to decide.”

 

According to him, NPP as a party has the desire to expand in the entire North east and felt that it should contest in as many seats as possible.

 

On the request of the UDP and the MDA partners, Sangma said, “We have decided we should have a united common candidate and we (NPP) decided to back the candidature of Mawthoh who is a member of the UDP”