Congress a discipline party will sort out its crisis in Meghalaya

Shillong, Jul 26 (UNI) Former Lok Sabha speaker and NCP leader Purno Agitok Sangma today expressed concern over the current political instability in Meghalaya and urged the Congress to sort out its inner squabbles.

"The Congress should stop this politics of one upmanship in the state,'' Mr Sangma told UNI over the phone from New Delhi.

Asserting that the Congress party was a ''disciplined party'', Mr Sangma said it should immediately sort out differences and concentrate on development activities for interest of the people.

Mr Sangma's statement assumed significance in the wake of 17 Congress MLAs,who had chosen Mr J Dringwell Rymbai as their Congress Legislature Party leader last June, demanded to re-instate former Chief Minister DD Lapang as their new CLP leader.

Last month, Mr JD Rymbai took over the helm of affairs after Mr Lapang lost his majority as the CLP leader.

The schism in the party surfaced again after present Chief Minister Mr Rymbai refused to induct senior Congress leader and AICC member KK Dkhar a ministerial berth in the ministry.

''Why should they change leader every now and then. I don't favour the idea of change of leader,'' Mr Sangma asked while considering that there are only 18 months left for the people to seek their people's mandate.

On the BJP move to form an alternative government, the seasoned politician said the NCP was cold to that idea.

When asked, the Tura Lok Sabha member said that the NCP would extend its outside support to the Congress if required for the sake of stability.

The NCP which is the main opposition party in the House of 60 has seven MLAs.

Last month, Union Minister and Congress Working Committee member Oscar Fernandez broached Mr Sangma to extend his support to the Lapang led government.

However, most of the Congress legislators' criticised Fernandez's striking a deal with the NCP.

Asked whether the NCP would recommend for a snap in view of the political situation, Mr Sangma said, why should there be a snap poll, ''its only a matter of party discipline and Congress will keep its house in order'' UNI RRK PC SS1952