Shillong, Oct 9: The popular proverb of the fox and the grapes came to play in the battle between the ruling National People’s Party and the Opposition in the upcoming bye-election to Shillong Lok Sabha seat.
“A fox shouted to all its fellow foxes and wild animals – ‘Friends, run away from that fruit tree because if you eat it you will get diarrhea and you may even have your stomach bloated, that is why we should all run away.’ So all those who were foolish and gullible ran away immediately,” said Deputy Chief Minister and NPP state president Prestone Tynsong while invoking Aesop’s fable to take a swipe at the Opposition.
During a campaign for NPP candidate Dr DRL Nonglait at Mylliem, Tynsong slammed the critics of the Conrad Sangma-led government for “misleading people like the fox”.
“Once they had all fled, that same fox, all alone, went slowly one by one and ate the grapes. The next morning when the animals passed by again, strangely, there was not a single grape left on that tree. The fox then said, ‘Oh, I was wrong. After I tasted how sour it was, I am still waiting for it to bear fruit again, till now it has not borne fruit,'” Tynsong narrated.
Explaining his analogy, Tynsong said, “Some say from Umshyrpi till Banuin, it feels like riding on a bad road. Then they start pointing to the picture of Prestone, the picture of Conrad, the picture of Sniawbhalang to say that the grape is sour.”
“And the strange thing is that many believe that. So, I want to say, mothers, fathers, young children, please judge carefully,” he added.
The Deputy Chief Minister also referred to a local youth storyteller named Akbar from Mylliem.
“The youth Akbar, his story pierces the heart and the mind. I will call him Akbar the Great. The message that this youth gives may change the mindset of the public of our state and our community,” Tynsong said.
NPP got Meghalaya exempted from CAA
Tynsong, meanwhile, said NPP is the only national party to emerge from the North East and credited it with keeping the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) out of Meghalaya and intervening on the FCRA amendment.
“Think about it, from the 8 states of the North East, only NPP is a national party. Even Assam does not have a single national party.”
He mentioned that the Election Commission of India recognised the Conrad K Sangma led NPP as a national party in 2019.
Listing the benefits of national party, Tynsong said, “The Government of India has to give an office in Delhi. Now NPP in Delhi has an office with the photo of P.A. Sangma, Conrad K Sangma and myself. Within the North East, is there any party that originated from these states that has an office in Delhi?”
“Meghalaya is small in population, but the capital city Delhi knows this state. In 2019 going backwards, no one talked about Meghalaya. But from 2019 onwards, as soon as you say Meghalaya, they remember North Avenue in Delhi,” he said.
Recalling the anti-CAA protests of 2019, Tynsong said, “It was almost like burning in the North East. Conrad K Sangma led a delegation of political parties from the North East and NGOs from Meghalaya and met Amit Shah.”
A week later, Meghalaya was exempted from CAA, he said.
He also mentioned about the Chief Minister’s initiatives to the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), saying, “He led many religious organisations to meet leaders in Delhi. Because of that, this Amendment Bill was sent to the JPC to examine it.”
“From the North East there was not a single member in the JPC. Conrad went again to meet the Speaker and in the end the Speaker appointed James PK Sangma. Is that not an honour?” he said.
Tynsong also hit out at critics who label NPP as an outsider or Garo party.
“You can throw stones however you want, but one day you will say we need the support of the NPP,” he said.
He appealed to voters to support Dr Nonglait, saying, “Let us work together, give full support to Dr Nonglait, so that he becomes our MP… so that people of Meghalaya will feel safe and get inspired when they see the photos of great leaders from a small state like Meghalaya.”
