With barely 10 months left for the assembly elections in Meghalaya, the Trinamool Congress has changed the political dynamics of the state with its entry and is now confident of a good showing.

Talking to News18, TMC’s Meghalaya in charge Dr Manas Ranjan Bhunia said he was convinced the party would do well in the 2023 polls as the functioning of the National People’s Party-led NDA government was not up to the expectations of the people of the state.

“We are confident as our teams at the state, district, and block levels, under the leadership of Dr Mukul Sangma and Charles Pyngrope, are proceeding in a very good way and getting a positive response from the people of the state,” Dr Bhunia said.

He said this is also because the incumbent state government led by Conrad K Sangma has been functioning in a way that is not positive for the people of Meghalaya.

At present, the Trinamool Congress is the only opposition party in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly.

Dr Bhunia, who is also a cabinet minister in the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal, arrived in the state on Saturday and met Dr Mukul Sangma and other state leaders to discuss preparations for the 2023 polls.

Pointing to issues against the present coalition government in Meghalaya, he also referred to the Memorandum of Understanding signed between Meghalaya and Assam and alleged that “lands have been given to Assam against the interest of the people of Meghalaya”. He also highlighted other issues such as economic development and “imposition” of the Hindi language in Northeastern states.

Dr Bhunia added that the TMC state leadership was getting support from different sections of society. “We are getting people from fields such as education, culture, social work and those who really love Meghalaya and keep the state’s interest paramount,” he said.

The Trinamool leader, however, said the party will take a call later on whether it will field candidates on all 60 seats as the final decision rests with Mamata Banerjee and state leaders Mukul Sangma and Charles Pyngrope.

So far, the party has formed a state committee besides district committees in 12 districts. Work is also on to officially open the state party office. According to him, the party has also proceeded in a positive way towards forming the block committees in the 60 assembly constituencies.

Dr Bhunia also informed that the party activities had slowed down after Mukul Sangma’s son recently met with a serious road accident in Bengaluru and is scheduled to be operated on.

“He (Mukul) is a little engaged with the treatment of his son. After his son’s recovery, within a few days, we will start working again. However, the others are pushing ahead with our agenda,” he said.

Responding to allegations that some Trinamool MLAs are likely to join other political parties ahead of the 2023 elections, Dr Bhunia said: “I do not know about this. I will discuss with Mukul Sangma… So let us see what is happening. We are keeping a watch on the issue.”

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