Shillong, October 5: North Shillong MLA Adelbert Nongrum on Monday maintained that he continues to be a member of the Voice of the People Party (VPP), even as he described his suspension by the party leadership as “illegal and unconstitutional.”
Speaking to reporters, Nongrum said he had joined the VPP believing that the party would be the true voice of the people and asserted that he has no intention of leaving it. “I have made it very clear right from the time when I decided to join VPP. I want to be in that party and I will not leave the party in future. Now I am still with VPP,” he said.
Asked whether he would remain with the VPP in the run-up to the 2028 Assembly elections, Nongrum reiterated that he continues to consider himself part of the party despite his suspension. “I am still with VPP till now, but the high level of VPP suspended me not in the right manner. Till date, I stake claim that it is an illegal and unconstitutional suspension,” he said.
The North Shillong legislator alleged procedural lapses in the suspension order, claiming that it did not properly identify him by his position as an MLA. According to Nongrum, the suspension letter referred to him as “Adelbert Nongrum, Jaiaw Umsyntiew” instead of identifying him as the MLA of North Shillong constituency. “They should have suspended me as MLA of North Shillong constituency, but in the letter they wrote Adelbert Nongrum, Jaiaw Umsyntiew. So, if I proceed in the court of law, they will be facing big embarrassment,” he claimed.
Nongrum said he would not accept the manner in which the suspension was imposed, alleging that the action had not followed the proper procedure. “I will not accept the way they suspended me because it is not through a true channel. It is an illegal suspension, an unconstitutional suspension,” he asserted.
The MLA also cited the controversy over his seating arrangement during a recent session of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly as supporting his position. Nongrum said the Speaker had initially shifted his seat in the House, but restored him to his earlier position after he challenged the decision the following day. “Everyone witnessed what happened in the Assembly. The Speaker shifted my seat at that time, then I challenged it the next day and he brought me back to the same place. So that has proved that their suspension is highly illegal and unconstitutional,” Nongrum said.
Despite his differences with the party leadership over the suspension, Nongrum reiterated that he has no plans to quit the VPP. Tighten repetitive suspension claimsUse more neutral headline wording
