Meghalaya 2023 polls: Paul Lyngdoh already considers himself a winner, hits out at Conrad Govt on Mukroh incident

The UDP leader is banking on his over 31 years in public service and the people whom he has served as a 3-time MLA and 4-time Cabinet minister

The tone is set for the upcoming assembly elections in Meghalaya to be held early next year. Political parties as well as aspiring candidates are already on the job to woo the voters by harping on different issues. But United Democratic Party (UDP) working president Paul Lyngdoh is absolutely upbeat. He is already calling himself a winner.

“Thirty-one years of experience as a public leader, 3 terms as a member of the assembly, 4 times as Cabinet minister, and now an Executive Member of KHADC which has been given the authority to issue building permissions in areas that were once under the state government. Now, with these strengths, I consider myself to be a winner,” a confident and extremely positive Lyngdoh said.

A strong candidate in the upcoming polls, Lyngdoh, speaking to news persons in Shillong said that he is more than prepared for the elections. “It’s going very well. I have been in this field of public life for the last 31 years.”

The veteran politician also launched a scathing attack on the Conrad Sangma government over the Mukroh incident. Lyngdoh feels that the government is allegedly not handling the matter in the way it should be. In reference to this, Lyngdoh said, “Whatever has been done so far is something so trivial that it does not seem like the government is really pushing and putting its foot down on the Mukroh incident.”

In the context of Assam Police Special Branch’s “secret” letter, inquiring about the number of churches and the rate of conversion to Christianity in Assam, the UDP leader said that the Khasi-Jaintia people were coerced to accede to India. The present generation will not allow any other form of coercion and he said he will lead from the front to ensure that nobody tramples upon the rights of the people.

“We, the Khasi Jaintia people, were never a part of India until the advent of British India (in the Northeast) in 1826. We, in fact, are the rulers. The traditional chieftains were coerced into acceding to India. But now, this generation will not allow any other form of coercion. I will lead from the front to ensure that we do not succumb to any pressure,” Lyngdoh said.

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