Meghalaya CM pooh-poohs BJP’s strategist statement on NPP

Correspondent
Chief Minister and national president of the National People’s Party (NPP), Conrad Sangma on Tuesday pooh-poohed BJP’s master strategist Himanta Biswa Sarma’s statement that the “NPP has no value”, but exuded confidence that NPP would fare well in the Manipur elections.
“In election campaigns everybody will give their speeches. If you listen to our speeches also we also have spoken in favour of our party and that is how we go in elections and that is the view that Himanta Biswa Sarma has given as a BJP leader,” he told journalists.
“That is his opinion (“NPP has no value”). But I have always maintain that whatever the situation will only be clear once election results are out. We will wait for election results, let us see,” the NPP Supremo added.
Sangma pooh-poohed Sarma’s remark that the BJP would form the government on its own in Manipur and the NPP would not be a part of it. Sangma also voiced confidence that the NPP would fare well in the Manipur elections and said the “results would prove that”.
“It would only be clear once election results are out. Similar statements were made in the past when the results came out the situation is different,” he added.
Sangma said, elections are fought on respective party ideologies and each party tries to win as many seats and so does the NPP.
Asked whether the NPP would again join hands with the BJP, the NPP Chief said, “If we don’t get a majority we will then get into government formation talks.”
Condemning attacks on NPP candidates in Manipur, the Chief Minister said such incidents should not happen in a democracy.
“The NPP is showing an upward trend in Manipur and hence such attacks. However, in a democracy the elections should be free and fair,” the NPP leader said.