BJP Meghalaya: Mawrie faces choice of leading as BJP chief or winning as MLA :::::::: Sonowal, Yediyurappa make it to BJP Parliamentary Board :

BJP infighting: Mawrie faces choice of leading as BJP chief or winning as MLA 

(Ex-Minister and Five time MLA Hek's differences with BJP chief widens) 

New Delhi/Shillong

Intensive internal bickering has struck the Meghalaya unit of BJP. Practically all the conventional restraints and discipline which formed the hallmark of BJP culture have done a vanishing act.

Every important leader is now communicating not among themselves or within the party forum, but through the media. 

The state unit chief Ernest Mawrie is now in direct confrontation with sitting legislator A L Hek. Another legislator Sanbor Shullai is now backing Mawrie.

It's a tactical move by Shulai, who represents South Shillong, as he does not want Hek to replace  Mawrie as the new president. In the last few days, leaders have proved that the BJP in Meghalaya is now a 'party of differences'.

Obviously, the central leadership including general secretary organisation B L Santhosh is also concerned about the manner things are progressing.

BJP national vice president M Chuba Ao as the state Prabhari is expected to take the entire party along. 

His name has also been dragged and it is now suggested that he is not quite happy the way things are moving in Meghalaya - where polls are due in February 2023.

"The BJP is not like Congress. It is known for discipline and sacrifices; but in Meghalaya, unity was always a casualty," said a source lamenting that in last four and half hears -- the two sitting BJP MLAs have shown 'amazing dislike' for each other and were not able to see eye to eye.

In 2018, the party performance was not at all inspiring as it could win only two seats after fielding 47 candidates. 

Meghalaya in-charge for BJP, Nalin Kohli, was replaced and M Chuba Ao was given the responsibility.

Senior BJP leader Chuba is a Naga and a Christian. The saffron party leader's socio-religious background has become relevant in Meghalaya as the high command was 'convinced' that in 2018 the so-called Hindu-Christian divide angle was played up by its rivals.

In the run up to the 2023 polls, there is a paradoxical kind of situation now. While the common people have understood the importance of the 'BJP factor' to push development and open up job avenues by augmenting corporate investments; on the other hand it is sheer 'infighting' that has dogged the party leaders.

"When it comes to corruption and nepotism, there is not much difference between NPP and Congress.

Hence, there is a vacant slot for the saffron party," one leader suggested.

State unit president Mawrie wants to contest from West Shillong - a typical cosmopolitan segment which houses 50-60 per cent of non-local voters.

The sitting MLA is Mohendra Rapsang from Congress and people have strong resentment against him.

But to 'save' his sagging political career - Rapsang wants to switchover to the BJP. Mawrie is more than keen to stall such a move and hence he had mooted the idea of 'no ticket for sitting MLAs'. This was on August 11.

But a few days later he had to make a u-turn and suggested he was himself in touch with 5-10 MLAs from

other parties. 

Nevertheless, he is seen as an 'obstacle' to several intending candidates and possible new

entrants. Hek has more than once alleged that Mawrie is generally working to 'stall' entry of leaders from

other parties.

The fact that Mawrie is also advisor to CM Conrad Sangma is being used by his rivals to allege that

the state unit BJP president is himself working in favour of the NPP.

"If you ask what is wrong with Mawrie's style of politics; as outsiders and common voters; we have

no issues. Probably he will win also because Congress is now out of race in this segment and the siting

MLA Ropsang has also failed us especially during Covid," said one senior citizen and a non-local

businessman from West Shillong area.

The resident hails from Qualapatty area in the assembly and he says, "I feel the issue is, Mawrie cannot 

hold on to both the works. To contest the assembly polls, he has to step aside as party president. His constituency would

require hell of hard work. Lot of footwalks, which a pradesh president may not deliver".

Moreover, regional party UDP has substantial presence in the constituency having won it in 2013.

In 2018, Ropsang could wrest the seat by defeating UDP candidate Paul Lyngdoh.

Ends

 Key Factors in West Shillong

# UDP's Paul Lyngdoh has an edge to return in a multi-cornered fight.

# The segment is spread across famous Mawprem region. BJP banking on about 50-60 percent of 

non-local voters and a significant number of Hindus (Nepalis, Bengalis and Marwaris)

# BJP chief Mawrie desperate to exploit 'Narendra Modi' and hyped 'nationalism' factors

#  Congress likely to field Augustar Jywra, a former Khasi Students' Union gen. secy 

## Pynthorumkhrah assembly

# A L Hek is sitting BJP MLA from Pynthorumkhrah assembly constituency

# He has won the seat continuously since 1998 as BJP nominee in

1998, 2003, 2008 and 2018. In 2013 - he won the seat as Congress candidate  

# But Hek faces a tough fight this time. 

# Both NPP and Congress are going to put up strong candidates. Congress may field

   working president P N Syiem, a former Chief Executive Member of Khasi Hills Autonomous District 

Council

# NPP nominee from Pynthorumkhrah could be Probity Nongpluh or AL Hek's nephew Rocky Hek.

ends 

Sonowal, Yediyurappa make it to BJP Parliamentary Board : Gadkari, Shivraj Singh Chouhan dropped

Nitin Gadkari, a former BJP national president, and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan dropped.

“Over the last eight years the kind of love, affection and importance that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given to the northeast region is there for everybody to see,” - said Sarbananda Sonowal on getting the prestigious nominaion - the first such instance from north east -to the BJP Parliamentary Board. 

Top three 

New Delhi

The BJP national president J P Nadda on Wednesday, Aug 17, reconstituted party's highest policy making body - the Parliamentary Board.

According to a party communique, the members areNadda himself as president and other members are Narendra Modi (PM),Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, B S Yediyurappa, Sarbananda Sonowal, K Laxman,Iqbal Singh Lalpura, Sudha Yadav, Satyanarayan Jatiya and B L Santhosh.

The statement from general secretary Arun Singh said, Santhosh, who is general secretary organisation will be the Secretary to the 11-member Parliamentary Board. 

Notably, K Laxman and B S Yediyurappa hail from the South. Iqbal Singh Lalpura is a Sikh. and at present also chairman of National Commission for Minorities.  

Sudha Yadav is a self made political leader whose husband was martyred in Kargil. She was earlier in-charge of BJP OBC Morcha. 

Laxman is from Telangana where BJP wants to do well in both state assembly polls and Lok Sabha elections in 2024. 

"The omission of Nitin Gadkari from the powerful board signals a major generational and political shift in the highest echelons of the BJP in the Narendra Modi-Amit Shah era," says 'The Tribune'.  

Of  course, the rejig had been overdue as there were a number of vacant slots due to the demise of Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley. Moreover, M Venkaiah Naidu was elevated as India's vice president in 2017 and Thawarchand Gehlot also moved as Governor of Karnataka in 2021. 

BS Yediyurappa's inclusion in the key panel shows 'compensation' for giving up the CM's chair in Karnataka, which goes to polls in April-May 2023.

This seems to be a clear attempt to keep the Lingayat leader in good humour in the run-up to the Assembly elections. 

Incidentally, Sonowal, too had sacrificed as Chief Minister making way for Amit Shah's handpicked Himanta Biswa Sarma.

ends