Shillong: The Voice of the People Party is catching heat. They protested Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma attending the Behdienkhlam Festival in Jowai. Both the BJP and festival organizers slammed the move, calling it a politicized stunt. They argue the party dragged a sacred cultural event into their own partisan fight.
Cabinet Minister and BJP leader Sanbor Shullai ripped into the VPP. He called the protest misplaced and embarrassing. The party claimed Sarma should settle the state border dispute before showing his face at the Pnar community event. Shullai brushed that aside. "To stage this kind of protest, we feel very shy and find it funny," he said. He insisted that border talks belong in committee rooms, not at religious festivals.
The festival organizers defended their guest list. They demanded the VPP quit meddling in their private affairs. They stated that the invitation was just a gesture of hospitality, not a political endorsement. The organizers pushed for the public to respect tradition. They want to preserve the sanctity of the festival as a place for faith, not political bickering.
Comments