Shillong: Former Meghalaya Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader, Dr Mukul Manda Sangma on Sunday said the TMC will not have any alliance with any political party that is part and parcel of the BJP-backed Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government led by the National People’s Party (NPP).
“70-75 per cent of the people in the state want this government to go. We must understand why people overall have this feeling. There must be a change and this government must go. Therefore, TMC will have nothing to do with any of the political parties who are in the ruling dispensation and this includes the Congress,” the Leader of Opposition in the Meghalaya Assembly said.
“TMC will go alone. We will field candidates but TMC will not have alliance with any political parties who are part of this government. We are prepared for everything and there will be elements of surprises not only in TMC but other political parties as well,” he reiterated.
On Saturday, Sangma along with TMC leaders held a meeting with TMC’s Meghalaya in-charge and West Bengal minister Manas Ranjan Bhunia on the 2023 Meghalaya Assembly elections.
Sangma refused to divulge details of the meeting but said that they have planned out certain political strategies to ensure that the party organizations are put in place across the state.
Some TMC legislators may switch sides ahead of the assembly elections, the former Chief Minister said, “We are prepared for everything and that there will certainly be elements of surprises in both ways. You will see some members from other sides probably joining other political parties, nothing is yet visible for many of our friends from the media but we know exactly what is happening on ground zero.”
Recalling the political events that unfolded ahead of the 2018 Assembly elections, Sangma said, “you saw suddenly many of our friends coming out with surprises deciding to join other political parties – so those kind of surprises I will not rule out for any political party, not only for TMC but for any political party be it for BJP, be it for NPP, be it for UDP, for any political party – there will be certain element of surprises.”
