Amid heightened political chatter over a perceived fissure within the United Democratic Party, speculation gained traction during the ongoing Budget Session of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly after UDP Working President Paul Lyngdoh was seen firing several pointed questions at Power Minister Metbah Lyngdoh — who also heads the party.
However, seeking to firmly quell the rumour mill and reclaim the political narrative, Paul Lyngdoh asserted that legislative scrutiny must not be conflated with political rebellion, maintaining that legislators do not come to the Assembly with party tags but as representatives of their respective constituencies.
“In the house (Assembly) to which we are elected, is the Temple of democracy, there is no party affiliation. We are here first and foremost to represent our electorate and the people of Meghalaya. Once we are here in the Assembly, we do not come wearing a party Jersey,” he said.
Framing his intervention within the broader doctrine of legislative oversight and democratic propriety, Lyngdoh underscored that questioning ministers — irrespective of intra-party equations — strengthens governance architecture rather than undermines party cohesion. Drawing from his own tenure in the Minister prior to the Cabinet reshuffle, he emphasised that intra-party interrogation is embedded in democratic functioning and enhances administrative efficiency.
“Now when I was Minister before the reshuffle, I had also to reply to the number of questions by my fellow party men. That is in the best interest of Democracy and infact the Minister concern should feel happy that by having somebody who knows him well asking these questions, he will get more familiar with the department with its functioning with various complexities of issues that the department of power that he holds is faced with. So I think he should be infact thankful that I am giving him that opportunity to learn more about the department by asking these questions,” he stated.
When pressed on rumours suggesting a difference of opinion with party president Metbah Lyngdoh, the UDP Working President categorically dismissed the narrative, reiterating that legislators function in the Assembly as elected representatives, not as party office-bearers bound by symbolic titles.
“Absolutely now. I am here if you look closely at the table where I am seated my name is reflected as Paul Lyngdoh, Member 18 West Shillong Constituency, no where it says Bah Paul Lyngdoh, Working President UDP. We do not come here with the party tags. I asked not only to him but also others,” he claimed.
‘No Party Jersey in the Temple of Democracy’: Paul Lyngdoh Dismisses Rift Talk Within UDP
