Gegong Apang

Gegong Apang (born July 8, 1949) is the former chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh. He was born to parents of Adi descent. He has served as chief minister from January 18 1980 to January 19 1999 and again from August 2003 to April 2007 when he was replaced by Dorjee Khandu.

He resigned as Chief Minister after a stint of 19 years in 1999. His most cherished dream was to surpass West Bengal patriarch Jyoti Basu's record as the longest surviving chief minister of any state in the country, but this dream was shattered when he had to resign after failing to defeat a No Confidence Motion in the Arunachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha. He was elected leader of the newly formed United Democratic Front, a coalition of his own political party, the Arunachal Congress and several others, in 2003. Only a few months later, Apang and his supporting MLAs merged with the Bharatiya Janata Party, making Arunachal Pradesh the first BJP-ruled state in India's Northeast.

A few months after the BJP-ruled National Democratic Alliance lost power at the center during 2004 elections, Apang merged with the Indian National Congress. In October, the Congress won a majority in state assembly elections and Apang remained as Chief Minister till 9 April, 2007.

External links

* [http://www.hindu.com/2004/08/29/stories/2004082905250100.htm Apang returns to Congress]
* [http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/2003/08/04/stories/2003080403930100.htm Apang Ministry sworn in]
* [http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2017/stories/20030829004603100.htm Frontline - A defection drama]