Newmai News Network SHILLONG | October 23 The National People’s Party (NPP) is confident that it will be able to perform well in the elections to the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) and the Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council (JHADC), which will enable it to lead these two councils after they go to polls in 2019. “We are determined to form the government in both the KHADC and JHADC by winning on our own,” NPP state president WR Kharlukhi said after a meeting to welcome the formal joining of former BJP leaders from Jaintia Hills into the party’s fold here on Tuesday. With the opposition Congress witnessing setbacks in both the ADCs as most of its elected members have shifted their allegiance by joining other parties in absence of the tenth schedule, Kharlukhi also said that the fight in the upcoming MDC elections will be mainly between the NPP and the United Democratic Party (UDP). He claimed that the NPP at present has got the highest vote share followed by the UDP and the opposition Congress. Asked about the preparation of the party, Kharlukhi said that the party has already set up the election committees for the selection of candidates who will be contesting in the elections to the two district councils. While the election committee for JHADC is being headed by the state’s C&RD minister Sniawbhalang Dhar and for KHADC by the NPP working president, he said. Also announcing that the party would be contesting from all the 29 seats each in KHADC and JHADC, Kharlukhi informed that the party will soon invite applications from interested candidates. When asked when the party will announce its list of candidates, he however said, “We have only set the ball rolling so it will take some time as they will be sitting as an election committee.” Meanwhile, the three who joined the NPP on Tuesday include a former deputy chairman of JHADC Seiborlang Shadap and two former leaders of the BJP East Jaintia Hills - Zosiama Thianglai (vice president) and Rolling Dkhar (organizing secretary). All of them have decided to contest the upcoming 2019 elections to the JHADC and urged the NPP to consider allotting tickets to them with the assurance to put up a good fight. While Shadap, who lost in 2014 elections by 19 votes, is seeking re-election from Sutnga-Narwan constituency, Thianglai, a former youth leader from Saipung area, is looking forward to contest from Saipung constituency and Dkhar from Soomer constituency. Thianglai had also earlier unsuccessfully contested in the 2014 MDC elections. Asked why they had quit the BJP, Thianglai and Dkhar said that they had decided to join the NPP, which is growing rapidly in the state and also after seeing that the BJP had allegedly collapsed in the state due to “communal reasons.” The former BJP East Jaintia Hills vice president also informed that the BJP has been dissolved in Saipung area.
