NPP-led coalition stakes claim to form govt, Conard Sangma to be next CM

The NPP-led coalition comprising of the BJP, UDP and HSPDP met Meghalaya Governor Ganga Prasad on Sunday and staked the claim to form a government in the northeastern state. NPP, UDP, BJP and HSPDP together have 29 MLAs, but the majority mark to form a government in Meghalaya Assembly is 31. Reports suggest that People's Democratic Front may also join them which means that the alliance would cross the majority mark of 30 needed for government formation.

Despite emerging as the largest party in Meghalaya, the Congress will be kept out of power by some astute political moves by the NPP and the BJP. NPP, BJP and UDF have decided to stitch an alliance to keep the Congress out of power in the state.

BJP's Himanta Biswas Sarma had earlier said that they would meet the Governor at 5 pm today.

"BJP has 2, upper hand will be NPP 19, followed by next upper hand UDP, they are 6. We are in discussion with PDF also. That is why at 5 pm we are going to meet governor with 29 members, that number will definitely go up...UDP has extended a support letter to us & we have discussed threadbare. It is just a matter of 2 hours, you will come to know everything, who will be the leader. Let it unfold officially in a dignified manner," Sarma said before the meeting.

Both NPP and BJP combined have 21 seats. Meanwhile, UDP, HSDP and GNC have a pre-poll alliance of their own, with eight seats among them. If both these groups come together, we can see a repeat of Goa and Manipur in Meghalaya.

"As a party we meet and discussed the formation of govt. We all decided we should form a non-Congress govt, and we have decided that NPP government should be formed led by Conrad Sangma as the CM," Donkupar Roy, president of United Democratic Party, told ANI today.

In the 60-member assembly, the Congress, which had been in power, bagged 21 seats, the NPP, led by Conrad Sangma, son of late PA Sangma, got 19 seats, the BJP got two seats, the United Democratic Party bagged six seats, the People's Democratic Front bagged four seats, the Hill State People's Democratic Party got two seats, the NCP and the Khun Hynniewtrep National Awakening Movement got one each and independents bagged three seats.

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