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Wife of slain Arunachal MLA announced as consensus candidate for by-poll
The decision was taken after a meeting of leaders of five prominent parties of Arunachal Pradesh. The meeting was called by Chief Minister Pema Khandu in Itanagar on Saturday. The by-poll for Khonsa West constituency will be held on October 21.
Chakat Aboh, the wife of Arunachal Pradesh MLA Tirong Aboh, who was shot dead earlier this year, has been announced as the consensus candidate for her husband’s Khonsa West seat.
The decision was taken after a meeting of leaders of five prominent parties of Arunachal Pradesh. The meeting was called by Chief Minister Pema Khandu in Itanagar on Saturday. The by-poll for Khonsa West constituency will be held on October 21.
Chakat Aboh confirmed her candidature, she will contest as as independent. Saturday’s meeting was attended by leaders of BJP, Congress, JD(U), People’s Party of Arunachal and National People’s Party (NPP). Tirong Aboh belonged to the NPP.
On May 21, days before the results of the Lok Sabha and Arunachal Pradesh Assembly were announced, suspected militants stopped Aboh’s convoy in Tirap, his home district, while he was on his way back from Assam’s Dibrugarh. The militant killed 11 people, including Aboh and his son. The case is currently being investigated by the National Investigation Agency.
Tirong Aboh emerged as a winner after the results of the Lok Sabha elections were announced on May 24.
“After the incident, there was fear among the locals. We had to find a way to turn things back to normal, so all parties decided to support Chakat Aboh’s candidature,” said Tapir Gao, BJP MP and president of the party’s Arunachal Pradesh unit.
In June, after appeal by MLAs that Chakat Aboh be elected unopposed from Khonsa West, CM Khandu had promised to convene an all-party meeting to arrive at a decision.
“In the first session of the Assembly, I had said that when the by-election is announced, I will hold discussions with all political parties to ensure it is peacefully conducted,” Khandu said.
