Blow to NCP as Congress clinches Garo council

In a blow to the NCP in Meghalaya, the Congress on Saturday clinched the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) after seven NCP members switched to the Congress side taking its tally to 18 in the 30-member council.

Shillong: In a blow to the NCP in
Meghalaya, the Congress on Saturday clinched the Garo Hills
Autonomous District Council (GHADC) after seven NCP members
switched to the Congress side taking its tally to 18 in the
30-member council.
NCP member of district council (MDC) P K Sangma who
switched to the Congress few days back along with six other
members was elected Chief Executive Member of the council
during a special session convened on the directions of
Governor R S Mooshahary.

The GHADC was kept under animated suspension since
April last year in the wake of instability set off after
allegations that the NCP had clinged to power despite losing
majority.

All the 11 NCP members, however, skipped today?s
special session of the council.

Yesterday, NCP leader and former Lok Sabha Speaker P A
Sangma had slammed the Congress-led Meghalaya government
saying it had no `respect for democracy`, a day after NCP?s
state unit Working President E K Sangma and the seven MDCs had
joined the Congress.

P A Sangma, on whose home turf Garo Hills the
Congress has made penetration, said the state government was
trying to forcibly install the executive committee of the
GHADC and claimed the move was in violation of a recent
Gauhati High Court ruling that had asked the government to
maintain status quo.
"A division bench of the Gauhati High Court had ruled
that till the inquiry into the alleged financial
irregularities in the GHADC is over, there cannot be any
installation of the executive council (EC)", the NCP leader
said.

"The government’s move to install the EC is purely
violation of the court verdict. The NCP will file a contempt
of court against the government," he said.

PTI

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