SHILLONG, APR 28: Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee president and former Shillong MP Vincent H. Pala indicated he may contest the upcoming Shillong Lok Sabha byelection, stating that the party is likely to finalise its candidate by May 15.
Pala came second in the 2024 Lok Sabha election after he was defeated by the former VPP MP Dr Ricky AJ Syngkon, who passed away on February 19.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Pala said, “I think we don’t have anybody. I have to contest but the formal meeting… last time we had a meeting and a resolution was sent to Delhi that I should be contesting but we didn’t take the views of all the blocks and districts. I think we will have another meeting maybe after May 10, then we will decide.”
He added that while his name had been proposed earlier, no final call was taken.
“There was one meeting, which they have proposed my name and that has been sent to Delhi but at that time I told them wait because I have to discuss with my family and friends and so let us have another round of meeting,” Pala said.
“So we will have another round of meeting and hopefully they should be able to decide but it doesn’t mean that I am the only one, maybe others also. Let us hope and let us see but majority of them they told me to contest,” he added.
On the selection process, Pala clarified, “Not yet finalised… for Shillong, when they decide for the candidate, we have to send from the state to the central and in the central, there will be an election authority who will look after all over India so they will finalise the name.”
“As of today, we have not even sent the names. We have only sent the resolution but we have to send in a proper format, not only for Meghalaya but many other states like in Assam as there will be byelections as there are some MPs who have contested the MLA elections, so some of the MPs will resign after winning the MLA elections, so those seats will also be announced but it is not yet finalised and it is not yet been declared,” he said.
“Even the proposal, we will sit again now and we will revise and think as we have to have a strategy for it,” Pala noted.
Asked about the timeline, he said, “Within May 15, we should be able to finalise (the candidate for the byelection).”
Pala said district and block leaders had earlier backed his candidature, but he had hesitated.
“Last time we had a meeting, the district presidents from 36 blocks and many leaders of the party unanimously they have recommended my name but that time I did not say yes as I have to talk to members of my family because I lost the election and I decided at that time that I will not fight election and I have taken MPCC secretary Manuel Badwar everywhere to fight for next MP election as we did not expect there will be a byelection. With the byelection coming, they told me to reconsider and rethink, that is why I told them let me think about it,” he said.
On organisational preparations, Pala said, “We are organising all the district presidents at the same time we are organising at the block level now. For the last one month, we are on the job. We do have a meeting every day. You have seen we have a meeting at the block level at Mylliem, Ri Bhoi.”
“Today I am here because we will be having a meeting in the evening. We are now concentrating in organising the party at the different level including district and block level,” he said.
“At the block level, we have all. Out of 36 blocks, one or two blocks we have to renew some of them otherwise we have block and district presidents.”
