UDP defend minister’s stand to allow people of Jaintia Hills to decide on railway issue, slams VPP for terming it as divisive politics

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaMarch 5, 2025

United Democratic Party (UDP) legislators on Wednesday defended the stand of cabinet minister Kyrmen Shylla to allow the people of Jaintia Hills region to decide on the proposed railway project even as they slammed the Voice of the People Party (VPP) for trying to misinterpret the issue with ‘divisive politics’.

Moving a short duration discussion on the issue, VPP legislator from Mawlai Brightstarwel Marbaniang accused Shylla of trying to bring “divisive politics” among the Khasis by stating that let the people of Jaintia Hills decide on the railway project without interferences of outsiders.

“I don’t know what the minister means by word “outsiders”…As a Khasi we are one community, united and through the statement made by the minister he was trying to bring what is known as divisive politics among the Khasis which I strongly condemned the statement made by the minister,” Marbaniang said.

Marbaniang also maintained that the VPP is not against railway projects especially goods trains and said, “Though we are in favour of railway connection but this can happen only if there is proper mechanism in place to see there is no influx into the state.”

Supporting his view, VPP president and Nongkrem legislator Ardent Basaiawmoit said, “When I look at the statement given by the minister, I think maybe it is just a slip of tongue and I feel that we should give him a benefit of doubt. However, I feel that this kind of a statement needs to be condemned in the strongest possible terms. Why do we try to sow a seed of division, differences among the sub-tribes of the Khasi tribes?”

VPP legislator from North Shillong Adelbert Nongrum also demanded Shylla to apologise for his statement.

Defending Shylla, UDP legislator from Mawkyrwat Renikton Lyngdoh Tongkhar said, “We have seen some NGOs from Khasi Hills they have raised their voice and many people also have raised their voices that they are against railways here in Meghalaya and yes we are going to hear also people from Jaintia Hills. There is nothing wrong with that, there is nothing wrong with listening to the voice of the people and what they want.”

UDP legislator from Amlarem Lahkmen Rymbui said, “…we should let the people decide what they want. We should not try to suffocate their voices. so I totally subscribe that this should not be taken as Khasi-Jaintia or anything.”

“…when the proposal comes from the Government of India, if the people like it, we should allow it. If the people don’t like it, what can we do?” he said.

UDP legislator from Mowkaiaw Nujorki Sungoh said that the statement of Shylla has nothing to do with divisive politics as alleged by the VPP.

“We never had that kind of idea where Jaintia or Pnar is different or Khasi Lyngngam is different, we as the party we totally subscribe to the idea as stated by Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit, we are one, we are united. But there is some point which we Jaintia people need to stand and decide on our own, and it is really strange from the VPP side, in this very simple statement they termed it as divisive politics,” he said.

“This statement made by the minister has nothing to do with politics, it is purely what the people of Jaintia Hills want. If they want railways to come to Khliehriat, let it be, if the people of Jaintia Hills decide they are against the railway line, we are with the people. So this has nothing to do with divisive politics. We totally stand on the ground that we are with the people of Jaintia, let them decide what they want,” Sungoh stated.