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North East poll results on expected lines

By Barun Das Gupta

GUWAHATI March 2. The results of the Assembly elections in the three North-Eastern States of Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland have been on expected lines: the CPI(M)-led Left Front has returned to power in Tripura for the fifth time, Meghalaya has got a hung Assembly and the Congress has been dislodged in Nagaland, though it has emerged the single largest party.

In Tripura, the Left Front has won 40 of the 59 seats for which results have been declared. Result of one seat is yet to be announced.

The Front is weaker by only two seats in Tripura (CPI-M 37 against 38 the last time and the CPI one against two earlier. The RSP retains its two seats.) The much-hyped Congress-INPT alliance failed to make any dent in this Left Front bastion, winning only 19 seats (Congress 13 and INPT 6). The alliance had hoped to rout the CPI(M) in the tribal areas, but failed miserably. It contested all the 20 tribal reserved seats, but won only 7 (INPT 6 and Congress 1). The lone Congress candidate, Ashok Deb Verma, won from the Golaghati (ST) constituency by just one vote. In the Bengali areas, the Congress won 12 seats. Its Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Jawahar Saha, lost by a huge margin of over 3000 votes.

In Meghalaya, the Congress has emerged as the single largest party. The NCP won 14 seats, 13 of them in the NCP leader, Purno Sangma's home district of Garo Hills. This is a big blow to Mr. Sangma prestige as it has shown him as a mere Garo leader and not even a State leader of Meghalaya. The party position is: Congress 22, NCP 14, UDP 9, MDP 4, BJP 2, HSPDP 2, Independents 5 and the Khun Hynnywitrep National Awakening Movement (KHNAM) 2. The last is the political party recently floated by the powerful Khasi Students' Union (KSU).The Congress is expected to form a government with the support of the UDP, the MDP and three of the five Independents.

In Nagaland, Congress with 21 seats has emerged the single largest single party. The Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN) with 29 seats is likely to stake its claim to form the new government. The DAN comprises the Naga People's Front (19 seats), BJP (7), JD(U) (2), and Samata (1). Democratic Movement (NDM) has won 4 seats and Independents 4. (Two results are awaited.)The Centre's peace talks with the NSCN(I-M) has paid rich electoral dividends to the BJP. With its unannounced support, the BJP made its debut in the Nagaland Assembly winning seven seats. Working behind the scene, the NSCN(I-M) has also succeeded in dislodging the Congress from power.

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