'Whatever decision he takes are thoroughly thought through for its repercussions.'
Former Lok Sabha Speaker Purno A Sangma who is now out of the Nationalist Congress Party has formed Nationalist People's Party, a new political party in Meghalaya to contest the next round of Assembly elections in the northeastern hill State in early 2013.
Former Lok Sabha speaker and Nationalist Congress Party leader Purno A Sangma on Thursday flayed the Centre's decision to impose President's rule in Nagaland and termed it as a ploy to rig the ensuing assembly election.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) general secretary and former Lok Sabha Speaker Purno A Sangma has fielded both his sons in the March 3 Meghalaya Assembly elections from two constituencies in his strong bastion in Garo Hills areas of the hill state.
The first session of the newly-constituted 16th Lok Sabha will be held from June 4 to June 11 with President Pranab Mukherjee addressing the joint sitting of both Houses on June 9.
Apart from Sangma, 11 other cabinet ministers were also sworn in by the governor.
While main political parties especially Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party are engaging in high-voltage campaign in Assam, young voters, especially the first timers, sound at a loss about which party or the candidate to choose, as they are hardly convinced about the poll promises and have not been swayed by histrionics of poll candidates.
As the two parliamentary constituencies in Meghalaya, Tura and Shillong go to polls on Wednesday, the glare will be on Tura constituency where former Lok Sabha Speaker and eight-time Lok Sabha member Purno A Sangma, 66, of the National People's Party is fighting the most crucial election in his life against Congress greenhorn Daryl Williams Ch Momin, 27, in a straight contest.
Apart from Kerala, the northeast perhaps is the only region where Congress can expect a decent win in the recently held Lok Sabha elections. K G Suresh looks at what the elections hold for the northeast.