SHILLONG, March 8 - Opposition Congress today boycotted Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy�s maiden address to the State Assembly protesting against his controversial tweet against Kashmiris.
The is the first time that an address of the Governor to the Meghalaya Assembly has been boycotted, although a Congress MLA, Ampareen Lyngdoh had walked out of the Assembly in protest during the budget session last year when the then Governor Ganga Prasad delivered his speech in Hindi.
Today, the Opposition kept away from the Session during the address and also didn�t turn up for the customary photo session with the members of the Assembly later.
Asked about the boycott, the Governor said, �so I see that they have done so, what can I do about it.�
He, however, refused to comment on his controversial tweet. �I have nothing to say beyond what I have already said on my tweets. I have already said that there is nothing further to be said beyond what I have said in my tweets,� Roy said.
In his tweet on February 19, Roy wrote, �An appeal from a retired Colonel of the Indian Army: Don�t visit Kashmir, don�t go to Amarnath for the next two years. Don�t buy articles from Kashmir emporia or Kashmiri tradesmen who come every winter. Boycott everything Kashmiri. I am inclined to agree.�
Earlier, Leader of the Opposition, Mukul Sangma condemning the tweet said: �Does it augur well for the nation when a person who is holding a constitutional post, no less than a Governor of a State, can engage in this kind of message which is capable of creating a rift amongst the citizens of the nation.�
Expressing �anger and agony� over the remarks, Sangma said, the nation�s fight is against the terrorists and not against any community or against any group of people.
Chief Minister Conrad Sangma condemned the Opposition for boycotting the Governor�s address. �It�s an insult to the chair. Not appropriate and not good. Unfortunate that the Opposition has done this,� the CM added.
