Meghalaya TMC slams Congress for challenging defection of 12 MLAs

SHILLONG:

Party leader Mukul Sangma of the newly formed Meghalaya unit of the All-India Trinamool, Congress (AITC) has slammed the Congress for attempting to have a “cock and bull story” by challenging the decision of the 12 MLAs to merge with the new party.

Sangma stated, “The whole petition filed by one of the members of this august house is a concocted story with complete misrepresentation and distortion of facts. The purpose is to create hurdles in the smooth functioning of the new political party and to create a wrong perception in the minds of the people to delay their decision to join us in our new march.”

His statement came after the responses of the 10 MLAs who have responded to Assembly Speaker, Metbah Lyngdoh, and against the petition filed by Ampareen Lyngdoh, seeking their disqualification under the 10th Schedule.

Earlier, Lyngdoh said that the merger did not have adequate number to qualify to say that they have more than two-third of the effective strength of the then Congress legislature party. 

In response, Sangma termed it as a complete misrepresentation of facts, “since everyone knows that the members decided for this merger as per mandate of the 10th Schedule of the Constitution, and specifically, the mandated act specified as para 4(1) and para 4(2) which shows our compliance with the requirement.”

He further stated how out of the effective strength of 17, 12 members constitute more than two-third of the effective strength of the then Congress Legislature Party. He hit back at the petitioner for downplaying the number from 12 to 10.

Interestingly, the Congress did not file any petition against former Assembly Speaker, Charles Pyngrope and Sutnga-Saipung legislator, Shitlang Pale. In response, Sangma stated how it has confirmed his suspicion that it a Congress’ ploy to create obstacles.

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