SHILLONG: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma’s wife Mehtab Chandee Sangma has been nominated as the National People’s Party (NPP) candidate for the upcoming bypolls in the Gambegre constituency.
The chief minister, who is also the NPP national president, made the announcement during a public meeting at Gambegre.
CM Sangma said the decision has been taken based on public demand. He said that the NPP will dedicatedly work for the development of Gambegre.
Notably, the Gambegre seat fell vacant after the resignation of sitting Congress MLA Saleng A. Sangma on June 10 following his election as Lok Sabha MP from the Tura parliamentary seat.
The Election Commission, however, is yet to announce the date for the by-poll in Gambegre constituency.
The election committee of NPP, on June 27, shortlisted four candidates for the upcoming Gambegre byelection. However, the party recently decided to allot ticket to Mehtab Chandee Sangma.
The Trinamool Congress is likely to put up Zenith Sangma’s wife Sadhiarani M. Sangma for the by-poll as she had contested the seat twice in the past and lost by a small margin.
The Congress is yet to announce the name of its final candidate for the by-poll. However, the party is examining the possibility of fielding Jingjang M. Marak as the candidate for the Gambegre by-election.
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The Congress will leave no stone unturned to win the seat as its defeat would mean that the Trinamool Congress would become the largest opposition party in the Assembly. With the vacancy, the Congress has four seats and the TMC has five.
