As the countdown begins for Assembly polls, Northeast Now caught up with former Meghalaya Chief Minister and now leader of the Opposition Dr Mukul Sangma. In an exclusive interview with executive editor Mahesh Deka, the TMC leader gives an insight into the party’s preparedness for the ensuing polls and varied issues concerning the northeastern state. Sangma says the incumbent government has done a lot of damage to the state. There is a sense of fear in the mind of the people of Meghalaya under the current dispensation, he claims.
Edited excerpts:
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TMC is fighting elections for the first time in Meghalaya. What are the issues you want to highlight?
Every election is an opportunity for the people to select their representatives based on their intelligence. There are multiple political dynamics which will come to play and are determined by multiple factors, including what the incumbent government has done in the past five years. What we see today is that the five years of this NPP-led ruling dispensation has done a lot of damage to the interests of the state. You have seen as to how the state has hit the news headlines for all the wrong reasons. Anything that tarnishes the image of the state hurts me and hurts every citizen of the state as well.
Along with power, comes the responsibility of protecting the interest of the state and its people, which the incumbent government has completely failed. Although there are umpteen allegations against the govt, they are always in denial mode. So our strategy is that we don’t want the repetition of these five years. In the past five years, the youths have been deprived of job opportunities. No vacancies were filled up during this period. So, there is an urgent need to change the government to change the present scenario. That’s why in the larger interest of the state, all people belonging to Khasi, Jaintia and Garo communities must come together and give a decisive mandate so that we can take forward the state.
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You are talking about single Meghalaya identity and uniting the Khasis, Jaintias and Garos of the state. But how is it possible given the fact that there are demands for separate states?
We have to accept the ground reality as to how certain factors generate these kinds of demands. These are demands, which revolve around the aspirations of some people who speak on behalf of a particular tribe or community. But we need to look at one thing – are these genuine demands? Are the people who are demanding separate statehood, really taking care of their demand to give it to fruition with sincere intent? Or are these only the political strategy of these parties to remain relevant in the political landscape?
The people involved in such demands are either affiliated with certain political parties or aspiring poll candidates. Therefore, it is nothing but whipping up some kind of demand, which can be connected to people’s expected line of aspirations. If a new state is given, who will say no? It is naturally an expected line. But the fact is that by doing so, we should not end up dividing the state. We must look at diverse angles. I believe there should be a sense of ‘oneness’ among the people of Meghalaya. Yes, demand is there, but at this juncture, we need to stay united and make the state strong.
So do you want to say separate state demand is raised for political interest?
I have told you the story. And that is the reality.
Your opponents claimed TMC is a Bengali-dominated outsider party. How do you respond to that?
Except for the regional parties, tell me which party– be it Congress, BJP or the NPP– has its headquarters in Meghalaya. Such kind of narratives is not acceptable in a civilised society. The people of Meghalaya are not uncivilised, so this type of narrative has been created because they have gone out of issues. The TMC, we all know is the party established by Mamata Didi ( Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee), who was one of the dedicated, hardworking, committed workers or leaders of the Congress party once upon a time. We were all together in the Congress party. But she severed ties with the grand old party for the larger interest of the people of West Bengal.
Similarly, here also we have looked at Congress. The party resorted to lip service and they deviated from the ground reality. Therefore, if you are building a political party because you have to serve the people, serve the nation because the nation comes first. The interest of the people must supersede the interest of the party.
In a democracy, everybody has a responsibility whether you are in government or in opposition. So as the opposition, you have to do justice to your role as opposition. As an opposition party, it has to create an atmosphere that those at the helm of affairs, can be dethroned at any moment. Therefore, we must build a positive image and should not take the electorates for granted, which needs to be generated through actions. The reason people are accepting me is that my sole agenda is to fulfil the aspirations of my people and do justice by utilizing the time, God has given me. I’m still strong so let me utilize this time to serve the people of my state in a better way.