No CLP meeting has been held for the past one year although it’s been a convention to hold the meeting every month to talk out differences.

“Holding the CLP meeting is the only way out to settle these differences within the party. It has to be held sometimes… now it is left upon the wisdom of the CLP leader (Mukul Sangma) to convene it,” Lyngdoh said when asked how best to solve the present political crisis.

He added the All India Congress Committee must direct the CLP leader to convene the meeting so that matters are settled at the earliest.

Rebel Congress legislators are demanding holding of the CLP meeting so that Sangma can prove his majority to stay on or else vacate his position.

Yesterday, they were in New Delhi and met Sonia Gandhi’s political advisor Ahmed Patel who, in turn, assured that the meeting would be convened soon and asked the dissidents to return here.

Meanwhile, Lyngdoh said this ongoing tussle for power was certainly affecting the image of the Congress party and also the government’s functioning.

“In the last few weeks with most of the ministers and the Chief Minister shuttling between Shillong and New Delhi the government’s functioning has been affected,” he

stated.

Nonetheless, Lyngdoh said bureaucrats must carry on with their duties irrespective of the political bickering.