Silver coin betrayal, says Cong after its lone Meghalaya MLA joins ruling NPP

Hindustan Times

3 days ago

SHILLONG: Ronnie V. Lyngdoh, the lone Congress legislator in the 60-member Meghalaya assembly, on Wednesday switched over to the ruling National People's Party (NPP) led by chief minister Conrad Sangma. Assembly speaker Thomas A. Sangma said he received Lyngdoh's request to merge with the NPP and had accepted his application (X//RakkamA_Sangma)
The Congress described Lyngdoh's exit as a 'betrayal for silver coins' and a continuation of the ruling NPP's 'shopping spree' funded through 'loot and corruption'.
Assembly speaker Thomas A. Sangma said he received Lyngdoh's request to merge with the NPP. 'With assistance from legal advisers and my staff, we found the application valid under the provisions of the 10th Schedule of the Indian Constitution. Accordingly, I have accepted his application. He is now a member of the National People's Party with immediate effect,' the speaker said.
Lyngdoh's move raises the NPP's tally to 33 in the 60-member House and ensures that the Congress, which won five seats in the February 2023 state elections, does not have a single elected representative in the assembly. One of them, Saleng A Sangma, was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Tura seat in 2024, while three others joined the NPP.
Lyngdoh said he made the switch following continued appeals from his constituents, and was not driven by ambition. 'It wasn't my personal wish. People have been urging me since 2018. I stayed with the Congress as I was elected on its ticket. But now, with more than half the term gone, my constituents believe it's time we prioritise stability and development,' he said, insisting that he joined the NPP without any preconditions.
'My only request to the chief minister is to ensure stability and development for the people,' he said.
Lyngdoh said he and NPP leader Hamletson Dohling, whom he defeated in the assembly election on the Mylliem seat, were committed to working together for the constituency. Asked if he would be fielded from the same seat in 2028, Lyngdoh was noncommittal. 'We'll decide when the time comes — when we have to cross that bridge,' he said.
Speaker Sangma said Lyngdoh had declared his intention to withdraw his public interest litigation (PIL) in the Meghalaya high court to seek the disqualification of the three legislators, Celestine Lyngdoh, Charles Marngar, and Gabriel Wahlang, who had switched from the Congress to the NPP.
In a statement, Congress joint secretary and Meghalaya in-charge, Mathew Antony, said the Congress had anticipated Lyngdoh's move. 'The resignation of Ronnie V Lyngdoh has not come as a surprise (the party has not received any official resignation as we speak), as the shopping spree of the ruling NPP from the money raised through corruption and looting of the people of Meghalaya continues,' Antony said.
Drawing a Biblical parallel, Antony said in a statement: 'We all know the fate of Judas who became a chosen disciple amongst the 12, only to betray the one who raised them. Same with our 3 +1 MLAs who committed their loyalty to win as MLAs with the hand symbol of the Congress party and then to betray us for the silver coins offered to them.'
He also suggested that Lyngdoh's poor performance as a legislator and uncertainty about a future Congress ticket may have influenced his decision, and emphasised that the Congress will emerge 'more stronger with new leaders' to be inducted into the party.