• We cannot go back, says BJP leader Sarma
•Extends support to NDPP for forming next government
Our Correspondent
Kohima | March 5
Severing a 15- year old alliance, BJP leader and North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) convenor, Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday announced that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) cannot go back to Naga People’s Front (NPF).
“Today I can officially say that we are no longer, we have no track with NPF. There is no question of going back to NPF in forming the government,” he said while talking to media persons here at Hotel Vivor after meeting former MP and chief ministerial candidate Neiphiu Rio. Sarma along with Ajay Jamwal, North East General Secretary (Org) today met Rio at Hotel Vivor to discuss on the “detailed architecture of the government.”
“We have advised TR Zeliang that in respecting the best democratic norms he should resign because NDPP and BJP as pre-poll alliance partner have the majority and we also have support from our alliance partners JD (U) and NPP,” he said.
The announcement comes as a major setback for the NPF led by it chief ministerial candidate TR Zeliang who have been harboring hopes that the BJP might ditch NDPP to form the new ministry. Even though NPF emerged the single largest party in the recently declared 13 NLA election, it was shy of the magic number to form the government by itself. Its pre-poll alliance partners had also ditched the regional party to join the NDPP-BJP bandwagon.
All these hopes were dashed with Sarma announcing the severing of ties with the NPF on Monday.
“We have decided that we will go with NDPP. We have gone to the people. People have given us mandate so now BJP cannot go back to NPF, because we cannot betray the mandate of the people,” he said adding that the NDPP and BJP contested the election jointly as pre-poll alliance.
Stating that BJP are grateful that NPF still wanted to support BJP, Sarma however said that the problem is that they cannot ditch the people of Nagaland as they have contested the election jointly with NDPP in a pre-poll alliance.
Responding to a query, Sarma also said it would be “improper for central leadership to meet TR Zeliang at this juncture because that would send a wrong signal to the people of Nagaland.”
“There is absolutely no problem TR Zeliang can meet our central leadership but after the formation of the government. Because our central leadership will never say no to meet a former chief minister…,” Sarma said.
‘Break-up with NPF will not affect partnership in Manipur’
On the question of whether the break-up with NPF would have a negative impact in Manipur where the two parties has an alliance, Sarma said the NPF in Manipur is a different registered party, independent of Nagaland NPF, and that BJP would sort it out with the Manipur NPF on its own.
“When Dr. Shurhozelie Liezietsu severed ties with BJP in Nagaland, it did not affect Manipur “because in the NPF constitution, Manipur NPF is registered differently. So we will continue to have track with Manipur NPF,” he explained.
Sarma also stated that the BJP has already extended its support to Rio for forming next government in Nagaland.
“We had discussed the detailed architectural of the government, how BJP and NDPP will be representing the government, what will be the ratio, how will ensure stability in Nagaland. We have discussed everything and arrived at some final conclusion,” Sarma revealed.
It was also agreed that BJP and NDPP, JD (U) and its alliance partners will constitute a joint alliance and the alliance government will run on that line. Neiphiu Rio had already proposed the joint alliance name as People Democratic Alliance (PDA).
In the larger landscape, he said, NDPP will be a member of NEDA and NDA. On alliance leadership matter, Sarma said, “We have already extended support to NDPP so NDPP leader is the leader of the alliance.”
The BJP leader also said that the Prime Minister would be invited to the swearing-in ceremony adding that a good number of central leadership will also be present.
Patton elected as BLP leader
Meanwhile the BJP Nagaland unit held a formal meeting at Hotel Sarmati Dimapur Nagaland on March 5 with its 12(twelve) newly elected BJP legislators in the presence of Central BJP observers JP Nanda, Union Minister of Health, Himanta Biwas Sarma, Finance Minister from Assam, Arun Singh, National BJP General Secretary and Ajay Jamwal, North East General Secretary(Org).
At the meeting, Y. Patton was elected unanimously as the BLP leader (Bharatiya Janata Party Leader of the Party). It was proposed by P. Paiwang Konyak and seconded by S. Pangyu Phom, a press release issued by media cell, BJP Nagaland informed.
Central BJP observers JP Nanda Union Minister of Health, Arun Singh, National BJP General Secretary and BLP leader Y. Patton along with all the BJP Legislators will be meeting the Governor of Nagaland at Raj Bhavan Kohima on Tuesday with the support letter in favour of NDPP-BJP under the banner of PDA (People Democratic Alliance).
