Shillong: Ahead of the assembly election, ruling National People’s Party (NPP) legislator, S.G. Esmatur Mominin on Wednesday resigned from the party as well as from the State legislative assembly.
The former legislator is expected to join West Bengal-based Trinamool Congress on Thursday. He is the third legislator from the NPP to quit the party.
With the resignation of Mominin, the effective strength of the present assembly has reduced to 53 members in the 60-member legislative assembly.
Mominin’s resignation followed after the NPP declared former Assembly Speaker Abu Taher Mondal as the party candidate from the Phulbari assembly constituency in West Garo Hills district.
Mondal had recently joined the NPP after quitting Congress.
On December 19, former Congress minister, Dr Mazel Ampareen Lyngdoh and her party colleague Mohendro Rapsang gave up their membership from the assembly and joined the NPP.
This number would come down further with several other members slated to resign ahead of the assembly elections in 2023.
The mind of the other two suspended Congress legislators – Process T. Sawkmie (Mawlai) and Mayralborn Syiem (Nongpoh) is yet to be known although there are reports that they would be joining the United Democratic Party, a key ally in the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance coalition.
Two People’s Democratic Front legislators, including Information and Technology Minister Hamletson Dohling and Jason Sawkmie Mawlong and Hill State People’s Democratic Party legislator Samlin Malangiang, are set to join the NPP.
Trinamool Congress legislator Himalaya Muktan Shangpliang and two NPP legislators — Ferlin C. A. Sangma and Benedic R. Marak – resigned as members of the state legislative assembly and joined the BJP.
Shangpliang, a former bureaucrat, represents Mawsynram constituency in the East Khasi Hills district. Sangma was also a bureaucrat before joining active politics and is a representative from Selsella and Marak from Raksamgre in the Garo Hills region.
Another Independent legislator, Samuel Sangma (Baghmara) joined the BJP as an associate member after disassociating from the UDP, although he didn’t resign from the assembly.
Assembly elections to Meghalaya is expected to be held in February 2023.
