Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat resigned late on Friday, a little less than four months since assuming charge, due to uncertainty over his election to the state assembly within the stipulated six-month time period.
Though Rawat refused to answer queries regarding his resignation before he went to Raj Bhavan, he later describing his decision to quit as a constitutional crisis.
Rawat said due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Election Commission had decided to not hold a by-election, thus leading to Rawat’s resignation. He also mentioned that he could not participate in the bypoll to Almorah’s Sult seat in April as he was suffering from Covid-19.
Tirath Singh Rawat is an MP from Pauri Garhwal, who sworn in as Chief Minister on March 10. As per the Constitution of India, he needed to become a member of the state legislative assembly within six months after taking oath (before September 10) to continue to be in office.
As the Election Commission did not hold a by-election due to the pandemic, Rawat could not become an MLA in the stipulated time period.
Though the poll panel has not yet given any statement to indicate their decision, some people who are aware of the details have revealed that the EC never received any request from Uttarakhand for an emergency by-election to fulfil constitutional requirements.
“I thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and J P Nadda for the opportunity they gave me,” he told reporters outside Raj Bhavan in Dehradun.