James K Sangma slams AITC ‘voice of the people’ claim

“Without having fought a single election and by just hijacking some of the MLAs and bringing them into their fold I don’t think that gives them the right to say that they are the voice of the people and that they represent the voice of the people. It is elections which actually give the mandate to people,” Sangma told reporters.

He was reacting to the daily attacks by the AITC against the NPP-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government and its performance.

The AITC became an opposition party after 12 former Congress MLAs merged with the party in December last year.

On the various corruption allegations, Sangma said people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones at other people’s houses.

He reminded that the opposition are also people who have been in the ruling government in the past.

“There have been many accusations which have been hurled against them and they are also answerable for those accusations but just to throw stones and just to point fingers at others that too with unsubstantiated facts and data is I think very wrong,” he said.

Sangma further said that the recent challenge made by the AITC national spokesperson Saket Gokhale for a debate was not at all required. He added that the Chief Minister has been very clear that if all the ministers in the government were to start engaging in public debates who would come to the secretariat and who would do their work.

“We appreciate the concerns of Gokhale, he is very free to express his views but then challenging the chief minister or deputy chief minister I think that is something not required because the chief minister and the deputy chief minister they have been very accessible to the press, they have taken questions from all of you. The press is the fourth estate and all of you are the voice of the people who would like to ask questions on behalf of the people of the state and they have been answering those questions and I think that should suffice,” he said.

On the acceptability of the AITC as a new entrant in state politics, the NPP leader said people are the best judge and whether they will accept the AITC or not, that we will have to see after the 2023 elections.

Referring to the Congress claim that people are fed up with the MDA government and will not vote for its candidates in 2023, Sangma however said, “As we draw closer to the elections such kind of narrative or rhetoric will come about where people will start talking about how people are not happy but one or two people mentioning that does not reflect the mood of the people.”

“I think the best way to cage the mood of the people is election wherein they will cast their vote and they will finally give their views and whether they have accepted or they have appreciated the performance of the government or not that is when elections are held and results are declared it will speak for itself,” he asserted.

By Our Reporter