UDP-HSPDP are team-B of Congress: Syiem

Shillong, Jan 13: PDF leader Pynshngain N Syiem today alleged claimed that the People Democratic Front is a party which is neither with the Congress nor with the BJP unlike others who are team-B of these two national parties.

“The NPP is the team-B of the BJP while the UDP and the HSPDP which have forged a pre-poll alliance are team-B of the Congress but the PDF alone is neither with the BJP nor with the Congress,” Syiem told reporters after the party’s general conference meeting held here.

He said the National People’s Party is an ally of the BJP-led NDA government at the centre and also a partner in forming the government at Manipur besides being part and parcel of the North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) which is also spearheaded by the saffron party.

“This very association itself proves that the NPP is the team-B of the BJP,” Syiem, who is also projected as the chief ministerial candidate of the PDF, alleged.

Also terming the two regional parties – United Democratic Party (UDP) and Hill State People Democratic Party (HSPDP) as the team-B of the Congress, he said that the leaders of both these parties (Ardent Basaiawmoit and Donkupar Roy) have failed to support NC brought against the Congress-led government.

Taking a further dig at the UDP, the former Congress legislator from Mawsynram alleged the UDP for playing “double-standard politics”.

“The UDP should be clear whose sides it wants to be whether the Congress or the BJP. The UDP is also part of the BJP-led NEDA whereas its alliance partner the HSPDP is hell bent against the BJP,” he said.

Earlier, the PDF chairman had claimed that the PDF and the NPP are having a good chance to oust the Congress from the seat of power and form a coalition government after the upcoming Assembly polls.

Whether the PDF is keen in having an alliance with the NPP, Syiem however said that there is no pre-poll alliance between the two parties (NPP and PDF) but they are going to give a tough fight to other political parties in the upcoming elections.

Stating that the NPP seems to have come up stronger with the joining of former sitting legislators, the PDF leader however claimed but the PDF is much stronger than the NPP at the grassroot level.

Asked, he admitted that anti-incumbency against sitting legislators is very high and there is no doubt that it will have an impact in the upcoming polls.

“Though it looks stronger with the joining of heavy weights but people at the grassroot level are not convince with the NPP,” Syiem stated.