Principal Correspondent
Kohima, June 16
In a startling political development, three members of the post-poll alliance of NPF-led DAN government – Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) – today joined BJP to support and apparently benefit as the full-fledged members of the ruling DAN-III government.
Nagaland Assembly Speaker Chotisuh Sazo confirmed the resignation of the three NCP MLAs. The three include NCP state party president and also former BJP minister Imtilemba Sangtam, former home minister and present parliamentary secretary in DAN-III ministry Dr TM Lotha and first timer Mhonlumo Kikon.
Parliamentary Secretary for Land Revenue, Village Guards, Dobashis & Gaon Burahs, L. Khumo is the only remaining NCP legislator in the State while BJP which was having just one MLA or parliamentary secretary in the form of P. Paiwang Konyak has been increased to four. Nonetheless, that does not make any difference in the NPF-led DAN government as out of the 51 DAN members, NPF has 37 elected members even after Neiphiu Rio’s going to Lok Sabha.Declaring their joining with BJP, the three resigned NCP legislators, replying to queries on whether the state unit NCP is defunct, said “the party will be still be led by the one left behind legislator and other party functionaries.”
Retiring president Imtilemba said they took the decision in order to strengthen the hands of NPF-led DAN government, which they had already been doing even as the post-poll alliance partners of the DAN.
He also said the three NCP MLAs joined the BJP in order to be watch dogs of the State government. However, the resigned NCP legislators failed to respond as to how they would be watch dogs trying to be in the better side of the government. On being pointed that it was Dr Lotha who had been critical about some of the policies of the government even in the assembly, which were hardly taken into consideration, MLA Mhonlumo, who had been stripped off his MARCOFED chairmanship after TR Zeliang took over, replied “those were only constructive suggestions”.
Nonetheless, Dr. Lotha, replying diplomatically, said since the BJP had come to power at the national level and now that the NCP was not a party to the NDA government, “we wanted to strengthen the BJP in Nagaland to bring about more development in the interest of the electorates of the State”.
Asked whether the state NCP have had consultations with the central leaders in Delhi, Dr Lotha said “if consultations are to be held before joining, they (central leaders) would never want us to join the BJP”.
BJP Nagaland Unit president indirectly supplemented by stating that even the state BJP has not had direct talk about the NCP MLAs joining BJP and even there is no acceptance letter of their merging with the state BJP. “But we have communicated the development to out central leaders,” he stated.
Asked whether the three NCP legislators joined BJP in order to bargain and strengthen their own hands with better portfolios in the TR Zeliang-led DAN-III ministry, they said “the merger is without any conditions”.
Meanwhile, state BJP president Dr. M. Chuba expressed happiness on the joining of the three NCP legislators to the party front. He hoped that the functioning of the party would be strengthened. Nonetheless, as whether their joining would any way help in achieving some bigger responsibility for former Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio in the BJP-led NDA government, he said “it all depends on the role Rio plays”.
He asserted that since Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been focusing on minimal government and maximum governance, the next reshuffle might have Rio into the fold considering on the performance of the present Union Ministers. He also negated the opposition from BJP units of other North Eastern states against Rio stating that “in politics one or other may not like someone”.
However, the confusion about NCP Nagaland unit being defunct continues as the resigned NCP legislators in a resolution made available to media said “an emergency joint meeting of the NCP legislators and state office bearers along with the presidents of all frontal organizations and district presidents was held today (June 16) at the residence of Imtilemba Sangtam, the president NCP Nagaland, at Dimapur”.
It said after thorough deliberation, the House unanimously resolved that the NCP Nagaland Unit would merge with the BJP en-block with immediate effect.
The second resolution was “that all will work together unitedly in the BJP in order to strengthen the BJP Party in the State and also to strengthen the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi”.
