SHILLONG:23 Jan 2013

Elections may be knocking at the door but the buzz and antics associated with it in the form of campaigning seem to be of a low glaze. The interesting reason surmounting to the low key affair this time is that the political parties are in a dilemma over the lack of relevant issues to be raked up to score points over others in the run-up to the elections.

Unlike the past elections, with a month to go for polls, there is an air of lethargy in the election campaign as the political parties are yet to chalk out strategies based on the agenda of the parties.

None of the political parties have released manifestoes and the issues which were already in circulation in the past like the border dispute and influx among other regular features are likely to be featured again.

A situation of instability shows with the coalition parties like the UDP, which are yet to pull out of the Government, continuing to blame the Congress and its party functionaries for their omissions and commissions forgetting that that are still very much, a part of the Government.

When contacted, MPCC working president Deborah Marak, however, said that everyone is meeting voters quietly without going to the press and this may be the reason for the low key campaign. Moreover, with so many restrictions due to the model code of conduct, the candidates are cautious not to indulge in excesses, she said.

Meanwhile, UDP working president Paul Lyngdoh said that it would be difficult on his part to comment on the elections fever in other constituencies.

“As far my as my constituency is concerned, the election fever has prevailed for quite some time. We are all busy with our election campaigns,” Lyngdoh said. “There are many issues which the UDP is going to raise during its election campaign including the law and order problem in Garo Hills,” UDP working president said.

When asked as to why the party has not pulled out from Congress-led MUA Government, he said that a new house would mean a new beginning as they would like to break from the past.

On the party manifesto, Lyngdoh said that the party would release it on February 8.

“The main focus on the manifesto is going to be driven by the needs of Meghalaya and by the programmes bound out of the compulsion of Delhi politics,” Lyngdoh said.

Meanwhile, BJP State general Dipayan Chakraborty said that the interest of people in the upcoming elections has not reduced and remains to be as responsive as in previous times. “It is totally wrong to say that there is a lukewarm response to this election. But the only thing is that the style of campaigning in the State is totally different. Majority of the candidates are carrying on door-to-door campaign,” Chakraborty said.

“For the national party like the BJP, the campaign would pick up once the national leaders start arriving to campaign in the State. The central leaders would start campaigning from the first week of February,” State BJP general secretary said.

“We have got many corruption cases in the past five years. There are many scams which have been exposed,” Chakraborty said.

He said that an anti-Congress wave among the people of the State. “I am really disappointed since all the non-Congress political parties should have unitedly fought this election,” Chakraborty said.

source:theshilongtimes.com