Shillong Feb 26: The United Democratic Party on Tuesday expressed confidence that it will win the elections to the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council and Jaiñtia Hills Autonomous District Council and form the new executive committee in both the councils.

The regional party also hit out at the Congress on the citizenship amendment bill and alleged the citizenship issue has been there since the time of former Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru.

Speaking to reporters, UDP candidate from Jaïaw constituency and party’s working president, Paul Lyngdoh said that the people knew it was the Congress that had encouraged illegal immigrants both non-Muslims and Muslim Bangladeshis to come to the Northeast via Assam.

The Congress has alleged that the BJP is the same as the BJP and slammed the regional party for opposing the Citizenship Amendment Bill but work together with the BJP.

“The citizenship issue has been there since the time of Jawaharlal Nehru who wrote a letter in 1949 to the first chief minister of Assam, Gopinath Bordoloi advising him to accommodate illegal immigrants in Assam from the erstwhile East Pakistan (now Bangladesh),” Lyngdoh said.

Lyngdoh said that there is difference between the BJP and the Congress on the citizenship issue because the BJP tried to push the CAB in order to legalize non-Muslim Bangladeshis, and the Congress is worse, because it brought 10 million Muslim Bangladeshis while also pushing for bringing non-Muslim Bangladeshis.

Asked if the UDP and NPP have reached an understanding of forming the executive committee together, Lyngdoh said that the UDP was confident of securing majority in both the Councils, and form the new Executive Committee.

Both the councils will go to polls on Wednesday from 7 am to 4 pm.

The UDP is contesting in 27 out of 29 seats in the KHADC, and 26 seats in the JHADC.

On criminal activities that occurred in his Jaïaw constituency, the UDP and Lyngdoh, who is contesting the district council elections, condemned the attacks on vehicles of Khasi Students Union leader, Donald V. Thabah and the vehicle of the head of Lumkshaid locality.

“The Congress is attempting to insinuate the incident by linking to the elections and blaming that the UDP is behind the incident. How can one link the incident to the elections, and put the blame on us. It is totally unjustified, and we did not see any link to politics. It was reported that three to four incidents on the same night occurred during the hours of power shutdown,” Lyngdoh said while strongly condemning the criminal activities.

He said that the drugs scene in his area is also a matter of grave concern, and miscreants have been taking advantage of the darkness especially during the load shedding period.

Lyngdoh also blamed the Congress for the load shedding in the state, alleging it was the Congress that inked shady power deals in 2007 with private companies for executing 12 power projects which did not yield any result till date.