BJP legislator from South Shillong, Sanbor Shullai, revealed on Tuesday that 30 percent of his supporters refrained from voting in the recent Lok Sabha elections due to the party’s failure to field a candidate for the Shillong parliamentary seat. South Shillong recorded the lowest voter turnout, with only 58.36 percent participation.
“In South Shillong, 30 percent of die-hard BJP voters did not cast their votes out of anger,” Shullai told reporters. “These included people from all sections of society.”
Shullai elaborated that his supporters were frustrated by the absence of his name and the party symbol on the ballot. “Our volunteers said that people went to push the button but since my name was not there and my symbol was not there, they went to the presiding officer and asked where is the name of Sanbor and where is the Lotus (symbol) of Narendra Modi. They ran away and did not cast their votes,” he explained.
The BJP decided not to field candidates in the Shillong and Tura constituencies, opting instead to support the ruling National People’s Party (NPP) in the April 19 Lok Sabha polls, with the results to be announced on June 4.
Despite the setback, Shullai remains confident about the BJP’s prospects in South Shillong. “Even though my name and symbol were not there, we are still winning in my constituency. Sanbor and BJP are winning in South Shillong,” he asserted.
Reflecting on his past performance, Shullai mentioned that he secured third place in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. “When they fielded me, I came third. I couldn’t get the gold or silver medal, but at least I got the opportunity to stand in the victory stand with the bronze medal. This time, I submitted a letter of support for Dr. Fenella Lyngdoh as the BJP candidate, but we complied with the party’s directive to support the NPP,” he said.
Shullai also highlighted that the BJP in South Shillong had supported the NPP wholeheartedly in the MP elections.
Addressing allegations from opposition parties, Shullai accused them of spreading false propaganda that the BJP intends to convert Christians to Hinduism. “The opposition misled people, claiming they would protect them from BJP’s attempts to convert all Christians to Hinduism. They also said Sanbor would burn churches after winning, but did it happen?” he stated, refuting the claims as baseless.
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