Why Meghalaya CM is not letting go of home minister even after his resignation

Shillong: Rubbishing claims of fearing to shoulder responsibility over the resignation of home minister Lahkmen Rymbui, Meghalaya chief minister Conrad K Sangma said that the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) government has always maintained to take collective responsibility from Day 1 of coming to power in the state.

Rymbui had offered his resignation letter to the CM on August 15 amid the violence in Shillong during the funeral of former militant leader Cherishterfield Thangkhiew, who was killed by the police in an encounter two days earlier.

“We never let it go down to one individual. In a situation where the honourable home minister had submitted his resignation, I felt very strongly about the circumstances in the larger picture where we have the law and order situation of the state to think about. It would not be correct for him or for me to take a decision in a knee-jerk reaction based on that particular day,” said Sangma.

If it has to be, let it be done at an appropriate time after making sure that we’re taking decisions with all aspects into consideration, added Sangma.

Sangma said that it would send a negative message to the rest of the country about Meghalaya.”Therefore keeping all those factors in mind, we decided to stick together. I told him that it is a collective responsibility. We will be together and we will ensure that we come out of this situation,” he said.

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It is a time to be more firm and ensure that we work for the safety and security of our state, said Sangma.

The chief minister felt that at the end of the day whether he likes it or not he has to be responsible on all aspects. “Even if the home minister is there, at the end of the day, the CM is responsible for all the things that happened, good or bad,” said Sangma.