The three are part of KAM Meghalaya, a new political platform of activists and social workers who have come together to contest the elections this year under a common umbrella.
On a crisp February morning, in a working class pocket of Shillong’s Keating Road, Wanpynhun Kharsyntiew sat in deep conversation with Kiran Mandal. “It’s tough raising them (my children) on my own,” said Mandal, a single mother of two who runs a tea stall for a living.
Kharsyntiew said she understood. “My husband used to drink and fight – I have gone through some bad times,” she responded. “It doesn’t matter if I win or lose, I will still help you.”
Kharsyntiew, once a domestic help, is part of KAM Meghalaya, a new political platform of activists and social workers who have come together to contest the elections this year under a common umbrella. Since it is not a registered political party, the three candidates under its banner are contesting as Independents in three key urban constituencies of Shillong.
Always dressed in a Khasi jainsem (traditional garment worn by women), never without her kwai (betel nut) and endearingly referred to as “Kong Wanpynhun”, Kharsyntiew is contesting from East Shillong constituency where Keating Road falls.
Kharsyntiew’s campaign, which began as early as June 2022, is entirely run on a door-to-door model. She starts her day in the morning, going from one Shillong neighbourhood to another, along the way stopping by many homes like Mandal’s for a quick chat and an appeal: to vote for her on February 27.
This article was originally published in The Indian Express in the run up to the Meghalaya assembly elections in February 2023. Full article here.