Eight UDP MLAs from Meghalaya join BJP in Delhi in presence of Kiren Rijiju

Eight legislators from Meghalaya’s United Democratic Party (UDP) joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Delhi on Wednesday, September 23 in a political development that strengthens the BJP’s presence in the northeastern state.

Welcoming the legislators into the BJP, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the eight MLAs had been impressed by the development work undertaken in the Northeast under Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led governments over the past 12 years.

“We welcome eight elected members of the assembly, MLAs of Meghalaya, into the BJP family. They earlier belonged to UDP, a very prominent regional party,” Rijiju said at a press conference.

He said the legislators had been influenced by what he described as the transformation of the Northeast under the BJP-led government and Modi’s engagement with the region.

“Looking at the progress of Northeast and Meghalaya under Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the last 12 years and the transformation which has taken place, the heart-to-heart connection of Narendra Modi ji with the people of Northeast and the way BJP has changed the politics of development in Northeast. All eight MLAs are extremely impressed and influenced by Modi ji and our BJP-led government's performance,” Rijiju said.

The induction of the eight UDP legislators comes ahead of the next Meghalaya Assembly election and is expected to have implications for the political alignment in the state.

The UDP is one of Meghalaya’s major regional political parties and has been part of successive coalition governments in the state. The latest move marks a significant shift for the party as eight of its elected legislators have joined the BJP.