Correspondent
SHILLONG: Deborah C Marak, working president of the Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee, outlined the party’s strategy for revitalizing its presence in Garo Hills following significant setbacks and the challenges faced by the party in Garo Hills following the departure of Dr. Mukul Sangma and his supporters.
She explained that the Congress defeat in the Gambegre elections was partly due to a triangular contest, where the party’s votes were split between Congress and the Trinamool Congress (TMC). Had the votes of both parties been combined, Marak admitted, Congress could have secured a victory. She further explained that the rise of TMC in Garo Hills had eroded Congress’ support, dividing the votes and benefitting the NPP.
Talking about the vacuum left with the departure of Dr. Mukul Sangma along with his leaders from Congress, Deborah said, “One of the reasons for the Congress defeat in the Gambegre election was that, as you are all well aware, the Congress votes were divided in two. We would have won if Congress and TMC votes had been included, I acknowledge. However, a new party has entered Garo Hills under the name of the TMC, and our Congress vote has significantly weakened in favour of the TMC party. As a result, our votes are split and we constantly have to fight triangular these days, giving the NPP the upper hand.”
Marak emphasized that the decision to bring back former leaders into the party would require approval from the Congress high command. She clarified that the central leadership would make the final call regarding the rejoining of any leaders, including ex-MLAs.
Looking ahead, Marak expressed confidence in the party’s efforts to rebuild in Garo Hills. She announced that several political leaders from different parties are set to join Congress on December 2, marking a step forward in strengthening the party’s position in the region. Despite the setback of not having an MLA in Garo Hills at present, Marak affirmed that the Congress party is well-organized and committed to starting from scratch to revive and reorganize.
“Congress party is well-organized in Garo Hills,” she said adding, “At the moment, we don’t have any MLA in Garo Hills, but we will work hard to revive the party and organize it.”
When asked about the party’s limited representation in the Assembly, with only one Congress MLA, Marak acknowledged the challenge but reaffirmed the need to work diligently to revamp the party. “Yes, I do agree. We have only one Congress MLA at the moment. We need to start from scratch and work very hard to revamp the party,” she stated.
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