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Conrad to take oath as Meghalaya CM today

By Raju Das

SHILLONG, March 5 - The NPP-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government would be sworn in by Governor Ganga Prasad at the Raj Bhavan here on Tuesday ending the 10 years of Congress rule in this hill state.

NPP president Conrad Sangma would be sworn in as the Chief Minister of the new alliance, which has eight MLAs from the UDP-HSPDP alliance, four from the PDF, two from the BJP and one Independent taking the total over the 31 mark necessary to form the government.

The swearing-in ceremony would be attended by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and BJP president Amit Shah apart from other top BJP leaders.

The strength of the Cabinet is 12 in the 60-member House. All the 12 members of the Cabinet would be sworn in. According to sources, the UDP would get two berths and the Speaker�s post, the PDF two, HSPDP and BJP one each. The rest of the berths would remain with the NPP.

The MDA met the Governor last evening and submitted their letter of support after which Prasad invited the alliance to form the government. Incidentally, it was the death anniversary of late PA Sangma on Monday to which Conrad said that it was an �emotional moment� for being asked to lead the state on his father�s death anniversary.

�It was an emotional moment for me when we submitted the letter of support to form the government on my father�s second death anniversary. We are trying to follow his (PA Sangma�s) footsteps in the state and elsewhere,� Conrad said.

Meanwhile, the Congress, which is the single largest party with 21 seats, tried to form the government and offered the UDP the Chief Minister�s chair, which was rejected by UDP president and MLA from Shella, Donkupar Roy.

Former Chief Minister Mukul Sangma said that the UDP rejected the offer stating that it has already committed its support to the NPP and the Congress was �late in approaching it.�

�We offered two options to the UDP. First we offered Donkupar Roy to lead the coalition and the other was to have a coalition government split into two-halves with both the UDP and Congress leading it alternatively,� the former CM said.

However, the offer didn�t work out and top Congress leaders from New Delhi like Ahmed Patel, Kamal Nath and Mukul Wasnik left the state in the afternoon after attending the CLP meeting in which Sangma was made the leader.

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