EK Mawlong: A Political Biography

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EK Mawlong (1946-2008), political firebrand, architect of the United Democratic Party, former Chief Minister and Speaker of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly, has many feathers to his cap, many titles worth mentioning.

What most people are unaware of was the friendship Mawlong shared with my father, Late Purno A Sangma.

Aside from their political rivalry, what was admirable was their mutual respect for one another. They shared a meaningful friendship from their college days when my father, an orphan boy, was taken under the care of the Jesuit brothers. From sharing a room in St Stephen's Hall to being college mates at St Anthony's College, their bond grew stronger over the years. It was obvious that the credit to their long, shared friendship was a result of their shared vision, and love for Meghalaya.

This biography is a protracted effort which wouldn't have been possible without the generous contribution of a host of relatives, friends, and political leaders.

I am thankful to Conrad K Sangma, Chief Minister of Meghalaya for the Foreword, and to the political leaders of our state-SD Khongwir, Beningstand G Momin, Bindo M Lanong, Luderberg Ch Momin, H Donkupar Roy Lyngdoh, Process T Sawkmie, (L) Hispreaching Son Shylla, and a host of other political leaders for their invaluable and forthright observations.

I am obliged to Dr Andrew Simons, Commissioner and Secretary of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly, for granting access to all the published and unpublished proceedings of the House, and to all the staff of the Library of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly for their assistance.

This biography was conceptualised in the year 2009, months after Evansius Kek Mawlong, the seventh Chief Minister of Meghalaya passed away at a relatively young age of 62. A serious attempt was made only eight years later in 2017, when the International Centre for North-East Studies, Synod College, Shillong was asked to conduct an in-depth research on his political career. The team led by Dr Dhiraj Borkotoky exhibited immense academic prowess and submitted a comprehensive report after a year and a half of diligent work. However, documenting the incredible rise of Evansius Kek Mawlong from a cowherd in a nondescript village in East Khasi Hills to the highest executive office in the state simply needed more work. This is when I took over the endeavour to complete the biography.

In 2017, I was working as an Assistant Professor in the College of Community Science, Central Agricultural University, Tura and was able to afford only a few hours daily. It was not until April 2020, three years later, that I could give the biography the attention it deserved.

During the national lockdown imposed due to COVID-19, I was able to find the time to write about my father's enormous contribution to the state of Meghalaya in general, and his beloved people of Umroi constituency in particular.

After the lockdown eased, I visited Umroi to meet the older folks who were politically active from the 1970s till the 1990s. Most of them shared a common view about 'Bah Heh Kek', as his peers called him. They remembered him as the cheerful man in a white Ambassador car, wearing a straw hat on his head, waving at them. Mawlong, they told me, would shake hands with lay people with the same respect as dignitaries. He would call out children to line up for sweets and tell them stories. They told me that once upon a time, Umroi was a shrah' because of the impenetrable vegetation in most of the villages and that it was Mawlong who was the pioneer in executing Government schemes and bringing immense growth and development to Umroi. They also told me about his frequent visits to the constituency, not just before elections. Yet, they also told me that they regretted his overconfidence, which was partly the reason he lost the 2003 elections.