OPINION | Move to create a pan-Northeast political party rests on a fragile foundation

Meghalya's chief minister Conrad Sangma is beset by challenges. A diversion appears to be his way of confronting it (Source: PTI/File)

On November 4, a significant political development took place in New Delhi when three political parties of the Northeast — Pradyot Debbarma’s TIPRA Motha of Tripura, Meghalaya’s National People’s Party (NPP)-led by chief minister Conrad Sangma, and Assam’s newly formed People’s Party of Assam led by Daniel Langthasa — decided to merge into a common political entity.

Along with the three parties, former BJP national spokesperson Mmhonlumo Kikhon of Nagaland will also be part of the new political entity. A nine-member committee has been formed to finalise the framework, constitution, and policies of the new party.

An extended version of NDA in the region?

The leaders of the parties have stated that the new party will not be against any front but will represent the interests of the people of the Northeast. The fact is that both TIPRA Motha and NPP are part of the NDA. While Motha is a junior partner of the BJP-led government in Tripura, the BJP is a junior partner of the NPP-led government in Meghalaya.

Interestingly, these parties haven’t severed ties with the BJP. They have avoided this question. Their stance, as of now, indicates that the upcoming party’s political loyalty is likely to remain towards the saffron party as it remains the ruling party at the Centre.

More about saving their own political turfs

While the idea of a common political entity in the Northeast seems a good idea, the actual reason behind this formation seems different. The largest party among them is the NPP, which itself is the only party from the region with the status of a national party. Apart from Meghalaya, the party has presence in the state assemblies of Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.

The party, however, has faced a challenge from a new party, the Voice of the People Party (VPP), which won the Shillong Lok Sabha seat, falling in the Khasi-Jaintia hills, last year. The NPP, which failed to win a seat and even lost its bastion Tura Lok Sabha seat, was ahead only in 4 assembly constituencies. On the other hand, VPP was ahead in 32 assembly constituencies — one seat more than the majority mark in the state assembly — in the Lok Sabha elections and this year consolidated its strength by winning the Khasi Autonomous District Council Polls. While NPP was able to gain some strength in the Jaintia region in the Jaintia Autonomous District Council Polls, where it emerged as the single largest party, the VPP emerged as the second largest party.

After being in power since 2018, the Conrad Sangma-led NPP government is facing anti-incumbency and a strong challenge from the VPP in the Khasi-Jaintia region. On the other hand, in its bastion of the Garo hills, there have been signs of Congress revival, making the road to power in 2028 difficult for the NPP. So, it makes sense for Conrad Sangma to build a united political party for the region to boost his own image in the state.

TIPRA Motha’s challenges in Tripura

The same goes for Pradyot Debbarma also. His party TIPRA Motha has been facing allegations of corruption after being in power in the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council for close to 5 years. In addition to this, it has been a junior partner in the BJP government since last year. With the ADC elections round the corner, he has been accused of igniting the tribal sentiments with the issue of illegal immigration.

On the other hand, there has been no implementation of the Tiprasa Accord, an accord signed among Motha leaders, the state government and the Centre. This has resulted in dissatisfaction among the common tribals. So, forming a new party in the name of protecting the interests of the Northeast comes handy for Pradyot as this provides an opportunity to show his voter base that he is a significant political player in the region. He believes this strong regionalism will help in retaining his voter base.

Why a common party for the Northeast is not a viable idea

This isn’t the first time. Earlier Conrad Sangma’s father, PA Sangma, the former chief minister of the state and former Lok Sabha speaker from the region, tried to form a national party, primarily representing the tribals. But his attempt wasn’t successful.

The main barrier against the functioning of a common political party is the region’s diversity. The region has many ethnic tribes, having their own identity issues.

Take the example of Meghalaya where the Garo tribes have been upset with the Khasi region getting more importance. As a result, a section of Garos have been demanding a separate Garoland. The NPP is seen as a party of Garos, and this has harmed the party in the Khasi hills, where it isn’t a strong force. On the other hand, TIPRA Motha isn’t also supported wholeheartedly by all 19 tribes of the state.

Most prominent regional parties have stayed away

Already, some prominent parties like Naga Peoples Front (NPF), Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), Bodoland Peoples Front (BPF), United Peoples Party Liberal (UPPL), Zoram Peoples Movement (ZPM), Mizo National Front (MNF), VPP etc. have stayed away from the proposed political entity, raising questions of its viability in the region.

The VPP has already described the new upcoming political front as “building castles in the air.” Although this is a political attack, these words do have substance. The crucial questions are — How can a common political party formed by just three parties, and yet to face an electoral test, claim to represent the region, where there are many ethnic tribes? How can such a weak political entity be politically viable in the region?

Actually, irrespective of all tall claims, the proposed political party seems more like desperate attempts by Pradyot and Sangma to portray themselves as leaders of the Northeast so as to extract political leverage from the Centre’s ruling party, the BJP, in order to offer something to appease their respective voter bases and ease the growing dissatisfaction.