A day after Rahul Gandhi holds North East strategy meet, four Congressmen join BJP

Just a day after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi chaired meeting with northeastern states to strenghten the party, 4 leaders had joined BJP on Friday.

Imphal, April 28: In yet another blow to the Congress, four more MLAs joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday. Two Congress MLAs had joined the BJP earlier.

The four who joined the BJP on Friday are Y Surchandra, Ngamthang Haokip, O. Lukhoiand S Bira.

Chief Minister N Biren Singh and state unit president K Bhabanada felicitated them at the BJP office.

T Shyamkumar was the first Congress MLA to join the BJP after assembly elections. He was sworn in as a cabinet minister on March 15. Another MLA, Ginsuanhau Zou, followed him.

In the March election, the ruling Congress bagged 28 seats in the 60-member house to finish as the single largest group.

But the BJP, which secured 21 seats, joined hands with other parties to form a government.

State Congress President T N Haokip said, "Things have changed after the election. Friends have become foes. There is nothing called principle or ideology. Those who crossed floor are not afraid of disqualification."

Meanwhile, Speaker Y Khemchand is examining two petitions seeking disqualification of Shyamkumar and Zou.

The two Congress MLAs switching loyalties to BJP took place a day after party vice-president Rahul Gandhi chaired a meeting with northeastern states on its poor performances and leaders joining BJP and other issues.

Rahul Gandhi on Thursday chaired a meeting of the party's coordination committee for northeastern states and discussed ways to strenghten the party in the wake of electoral losses.

"At the meeting of the North East Congress Coordination Committee. Discussed ways to strengthen the party in the region," said Gandhi on his official Twitter account, posting his photos with the committee members.

The committee headed by Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma included former chief ministers of Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur, Nabam Tuki and Okram Ibobi Singh, respectively.

Committee's meeting was the first after it was re-constituted by Congress president Sonia Gandhi in November 2016.

"We discussed how to strengthen the North East Congress Committee and the party organisation in the northeast states. We also discussed why the Congress was losing in the northeast. We reviewed the reasons for the party's poor show in the assembly polls," said a member who attended the meeting.

All India Congress Committee general secretary C P Joshi, said, "Issues pertaining to the problems in northeast states, and organisational deliberations were held."

IANS