SHILLONG: Veteran political leader DD Lapang , who ended his 40-year-long association with Congress on Thursday, is being courted by the party's rivals - the ruling National People's Party ( NPP ) and BJP.Lapang, who had in November last year announced he would bow out of active politics, said a growing indifference to senior leaders of the party had led to his decision to resign from the party. The 84-year-old leader was replaced by Celestine Lyngdoh as president of the Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee in December last year, which many attributed to the mass exit of Congress leaders to NPP. He did not contest the assembly election in February this year.Soon after his resignation, NPP expressed its solidarity with Lapang. "It is a great loss for Congress that senior people like him have resigned. It is also quite sad to see he was forced to resign after having contributed so much to the state and to the Congress party," chief minister and NPP president Conrad Sangma said. Asked if NPP would try and bring Lapang into the party's fold, Conrad said it was "up to him (Lapang) to decide". He added, "We will discuss the matter ... I think people with such experience and knowledge have a lot to give."BJP wasn't far behind. "Lapang's resignation is a blow to the Congress," said BJP national spokesperson Nalin Kohli, who is also in charge of the party's affairs in the state.While Lapang has been tight-lipped about what he plans on doing next, winning over a senior leader like him would be a significant boost to the prospects of both ruling allies. Both parties had relied heavily on veterans who switched over from other parties to expand their appeal in the assembly election earlier this year. NPP has the numbers in the assembly but, as a new party, its organizational structure is relatively inexperienced. BJP, too, has not been able to make much gains in the state on its own - it has only two legislators in the assembly, both of whom switched over from other parties.Congress, meanwhile, has not given up on its attempts to retain him. On Saturday, former chief minister Mukul Sangma met Lapang in New Delhi to talk him out of resigning from the party. Lapang, however, has been firm on his intention to leave the party. The state Congress leadership now awaits word from the national leadership.

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