ITANAGAR, Oct 16 ? Charismatic Gegong Apang was back in the saddle in Arunachal Pradesh today heading a Congress government for his 21st year as Chief Minister, a record which is surpassed only by Jyoti Basu in West Bengal. A changed scenario greeted Apang this time with BJP, which he himself helped in the state, making its maiden entry into the Assembly in the polls.
The most popular figure in this north-eastern state, 57-year-old Apang has headed Congress, Arunachal Congress and BJP governments before returning with the Congress this time round. His stint included a 19-year rule since 1980 spanning four terms when he shaped the destiny of this startegic state.
His election as CLP leader had been unanimous but not without some acrimony as a section of the party, including PCC leaders, were against the ?aya ram gaya ram? politics indulged in by him.
Born on January 10, 1947 at Karko village in Upper Siang district, Apang started his political career as a member of the Congress Pradesh Council between 1972-1975 after passing out from J M College at Pasighat.
Since then there was no looking back for him. He became a member of the first provisonal Assembly between 1975-1978 and served as its agriculture minister in 1977. Apang was elected to the first Legislative Assembly of the state in 1978 and was appointed its PWD and agriculture minister. He returned in the second Assembly in January 1980 and became the chief minister for the first time on Januray 18 that year.
Of the four terms as chief minister, he headed Congress governments for three terms and in his fourth term that of the Arunachal Congress, a regional party floated by him in 1996 following differences with the then Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao over his demand for deportation of the Chakma-Hajong refugees from the tribal state.
He was toppled by Mukut Mithi, his home minister and now the PCC chief, who formed Congress (M). Mithi later joined Congress and led the party to a thumping win in the Assembly election held at the end of the year.
This left Apang in political wilderness for four years. A political survivor, he managed to engineer a mass defection, toppled the Mithi government and formed the United Democratic Front government in August last year.