Meghalaya: Eight UDP MLAs join BJP in New Delhi

Guwahati: Eight United Democratic Party (UDP) MLAs from Meghalaya joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the party headquarters in New Delhi on Wednesday, marking a formal split from the 12-member regional party.

The induction came days after the legislators had indicated that they would switch to the BJP if the party’s central leadership agreed to a set of demands, including the inclusion of Khasi language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, changes to coal-mining restrictions and implementation of the Meghalaya Residents Safety and Security Act (MRSSA).

BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra announced the induction at the party headquarters. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju was also present at the event.

The eight legislators had earlier formed a group to negotiate with the BJP leadership over their demands. Mawsynram MLA Olan Sing Suin had said the group would take a decision on joining the BJP depending on the response from the Centre. The group also raised the issue of relocating the Harijan Colony from Them Iew Mawlong in Shillong.

The proposed switch had triggered discussions within the UDP, which has 12 MLAs in the 60-member Meghalaya Assembly and is a constituent of the National People’s Party-led government. The party had convened its Central Executive Committee to discuss the development and had said the eight legislators remained members of the UDP until they formally left.

Former Meghalaya MLA Jemino Mawthoh had joined the BJP earlier in September after resigning from the UDP in May. He had said he had been receiving feelers from the BJP since 2021 and had taken the decision after consulting his supporters.

Before the formal induction, senior BJP leader Alexander Laloo Hek had said Union Home Minister Amit Shah had finalised the entry of the eight legislators. The BJP had two MLAs in the Assembly before the induction; the entry of eight UDP legislators takes its strength to 10.

At a press conference, Rijiju welcomed the eight legislators into the BJP and attributed their decision to what he described as the development record of the Narendra Modi government in the Northeast. He also said the legislators had been influenced by the BJP-led government’s performance.

The UDP’s 12-member strength had made it the second-largest constituent of the ruling coalition after the NPP. The formal induction of eight legislators marks a significant change in the composition of the Assembly and the state’s political alignment ahead of the 2028 Meghalaya Assembly election.