Shillong, Aug 3 (IANS) In a rare electoral contest involving members of the same academic institution, two professors of the North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) are set to face each other in the upcoming Shillong Lok Sabha bypoll after the university granted them No Objection Certificates (NOCs) to contest the election.
The bypoll has also drawn attention because the late sitting MP, Dr Ricky A.J. Syngkon, whose death necessitated the election, was himself a professor at NEHU, making it an unusual election where the outgoing parliamentarian and both principal contestants share academic ties with the state’s premier central university.
The two candidates are ruling National People’s Party (NPP) nominee Dr D.R.L. Nonglait of NEHU’s Department of Khasi and the opposition Voice of the People’s Party (VPP) candidate Prof Batskhem Myrboh from the Department of Political Science.
A senior official of the University said on Monday that the NOCs were approved during the 88th emergent meeting of the NEHU Executive Council held on July 30.
An official communication issued by the Joint Registrar confirmed that both faculty members have been granted permission to contest the parliamentary by-election.
The development comes after Prof Myrboh approached the Meghalaya High Court over an alleged delay in the issuance of the NOC.
With the university now granting the required clearance, both candidates are free to campaign without any administrative impediment.
The Shillong Lok Sabha bypoll was necessitated following the death of sitting MP Dr Ricky A.J. Syngkon on February 19 this year. Before entering electoral politics, Syngkon served as a professor at NEHU.
The Shillong parliamentary constituency comprises 36 Assembly segments spread across the Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills regions and is regarded as one of Meghalaya’s most politically significant seats.
With the nomination process complete and statutory clearances in place, both academic-turned-politicians have intensified their campaign across the constituency ahead of the by-election, setting the stage for a closely watched contest.
The Election Commission of India has yet to announce the dates of the bypoll.
–IANS
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