IMPHAL, June 30 - Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National president Amit Shah arrived here this afternoon to attend �Tolly Baithak�, a marathon parliamentary group meetings with party leaders of all Northeastern States excluding Assam.
Soon after his arrival at Imphal International airport here around 12.30 pm, the visiting BJP National president accompanied by Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, drove straight to a hotel and held meetings with party functionaries of NE hill States.
Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb-led team was the first to have a meeting with Shah. The meeting was attended by BJP general secretary Ram Madhav and North East Democratic Alliance Convenor Himanta Biswa Sarma and BJP NE in charge Ajay Jamal.
Later, Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu and State BJP president Tapir Gao met Shah, followed by Mizoram team. The BJP national President advised the State unit leaders to work hard to win Assembly as well as Lok Sabha elections. �Shah has advised us to win elections by joining hands with a regional party in Mizoram�, said BJP leader Vanlal Hmuaka from Mizoram.
BJP State unit leaders from Sikkim, Meghalaya and Manipur besides Nagaland Deputy Chief Minister Y Patton will also be meeting Shah.
�The group meeting will discuss the political situation and party�s preparation for the parliamentary elections in 2019,� said BJP Manipur in charge Prahlad Singh Patel.
Amit Shah will return to New Delhi on Sunday after meeting Chief Minister N Biren Singh and his Council of Ministers and MLAs.
After attending Booth President Sammelan in Guwahati in March, Amit Shah had said that BJP is targeting to win 21 Lok Sabha seats of the total 25 in Northeastern region in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The party had won eight seats in the last Lok Sabha polls in 2014.
After its victory in Assam Assembly polls in 2016 and subsequent formation of BJP-led coalition government in Manipur in 2017, BJP came out with remarkable performance in the recently held Assembly elections in Tripura and Nagaland and was able to form the government in Meghalaya, in alliance with National People�s Party, despite winning just two seats.
