SHILLONG : BJP Meghalaya president Rikman G Momin on Tuesday said the party’s central leadership will take the final decision on the BJP candidate for the Shillong Lok Sabha by-election as well as the proposed entry of eight UDP MLAs into the party.
Momin said the state BJP unit has already completed the process of inviting applications and shortlisting potential candidates for the by-election.
“We have already called for applications. We have a total of nine names and we have submitted them to the Centre. It will be decided by the central leadership. The Centre will take the decision,” Momin said.
On speculation that eight United Democratic Party (UDP) MLAs are preparing to join the BJP, Momin said the state unit has not received any official communication confirming the move.
“No, we have not fixed it yet. We don’t know whether they are ready to join or not. They may be having discussions with the central leadership. So right now we don’t have any intimation from the Centre,” he said.
The BJP state president also rejected suggestions that the state leadership was being sidelined in the decision-making process.
“No, state leadership is not neglected. Who says state leadership is neglected? Certain things which the Centre has to do,” Momin said.
The proposed move involving the eight UDP MLAs has generated political discussion in Meghalaya, while the BJP is also preparing for the upcoming Shillong Lok Sabha by-election. The final decisions on both matters, according to Momin, will rest with the party’s central leadership.