On his second day of campaigning in poll-bound Meghalaya, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on February 19 exuded confidence that Meghalaya will have a chief minister from the BJP.
“The chief minister will be from BJP, I said that CM should be from BJP,” Sarma, who was instrumental in forming the incumbent National People’s Party-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government after the 2018 assembly elections, said.
“It is for the people of the state to take action against the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government on the alleged corruption,” he said while alluding to the various corruption allegations against the Conrad Sangma government.
“We have come to the people’s court (assembly elections), it is for the people of Meghalaya to take action – not for central government against the incumbent government. Democracy is all about people,” Sarma told reporters after drumming up support for his party candidate Wankitboh Pohshna from East Shillong assembly constituency.
Sarma said that the BJP is not alleging anything against the Conrad Sangma-led government, “but we are trying to say that central government has sanctioned money for projects like the construction of Medical College in Tura, Shillong and everywhere.”
“Now we want to see those things physically. If it is not physically running then it is for the government of Meghalaya to give an answer to the people that why it is not there,” Sarma pointed out .
“Kindly answer where the medical colleges have disappeared,” he further said, adding that the BJP is only trying to say that the central government has sanctioned funds for various projects like construction of medical colleges in Meghalaya – Shillong and Tura.
The BJP leader said that the controversial letter, purportedly issued by the special branch of Assam Police seeking information on pattern of religious conversions and the number of churches in the state, was a “false letter”.
“It was a fabricated letter. My stand is very clear, in Assam every religion lives peacefully. Definitely, the same applies to Meghalaya,” he said.
Moreover, Sarma said: “We do not have any problem and Assam today is the most peaceful state in India.”
