Vincent H Pala (Congress), Agatha Sangma (NPP) emerges victorious in Meghalaya

Staff Correspondent

Shillong: Congress candidate Vincent H Pala retained the Shillong parliamentary seat by defeating the common candidate of the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) Jemino Mawthoh by a margin of 1,52,533 votes. Agatha Sangma (NPP), supported by the MDA, defeated Congress candidate and stalwart Mukul Sangma by more than 63,772 votes from the Tura seat.

Considering the local ‘mahagathbandhan’ in the form of the MDA, Pala dealt a blow to the State’s ruling coalition by winning with a margin that was higher than the votes that he polled in the last elections. During an interaction with a group of reporters, Pala said that he was re-elected due to the good work that he has done as an MP in the past ten years, even as he added that the party’s strong opposition to the CAB also worked in his favour.

On the other hand, Agatha Sangma’s victory margin was much higher than what her late father PA Sangma achieved. It was a stunning blow to the Congress when Mukul Sangma, the present leader of the Opposition in the State legislature and former Chief Minister, had to bite the dust. Tura was thought to be a close fight but considering the margin of victory, it was a big setback to the candidate and the Congress party as a whole.

The victory in Tura also reaffirmed that the seat has never slipped away from the hands of Purno Sangma’s family. Besides the eight terms under PA Sangma, and one time each under Agatha Sangma and Conrad K Sangma, the elected younger daughter of PA Sangma returned back to Parliament for the second time.

Also read: Meghalaya news