Leader of Opposition in Himachal Pradesh Assembly Jairam Thakur with BJP MLAs during a visit to Raj Bhavan to meet state Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla, in Shimla, Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2024.
PTI Photo
15 BJP MLAs were suspended from the Himachal Pradesh Assembly on Wednesday amid speculation that the saffron party is preparing to move a no-confidence motion against CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's government.
The development comes moments after Himachal Minister Vikramaditya Singh resigned from the government. Vikramaditya is the son of late Congress stalwart and former state chief minister, Virbhadra Singh.
News agency ANI reported that the 15 suspended MLAs include Leader of the Opposition Jairam Thakur, Vipin Singh Parmar, Randheer Sharma, Lokender Kumar, Vinod Kumar, Hans Raj, Janak Raj, Balbir Verma, Trilok Jamwal, Surender Shori, Deep Raj, Puran Thakur, Inder Singh Gandhi, and Dileep Thakur. They were expelled by Assembly Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania for allegedly shouting slogans in his chamber earlier today.
Earlier in the day, LoP Jairam Thakur, accompanied by a delegation of BJP MLAs, met Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla. After the meeting, Thakur told reporters, "We briefed the Governor about the Speaker's conduct towards Opposition MLAs. During the session, when we requested a division of votes on the financial bill, it was denied, leading to the House being adjourned twice. Subsequently, the manner in which the Marshals handled our MLAs was inappropriate. Our MLAs were subjected to attacks by the Marshals, resulting in injuries, an unprecedented occurrence in the Himachal Pradesh Assembly. BJP candidate Harsh Mahajan's victory in the Rajya Sabha elections underscores the loss of moral authority of the Congress government to remain in power."
Today's developments follow a stunning upset suffered by the ruling Congress in Himachal Pradesh yesterday, where the BJP won the state’s lone Rajya Sabha seat. The victory saw BJP candidate Harsh Mahajan defeating Congress stalwart Abhishek Manu Singhvi, setting the stage for a possible no-confidence motion in the Assembly.
The voting resulted in a tie, with both the Congress and the BJP candidates receiving 34 votes, indicating that at least six Congress MLAs voted against the party. The result was then declared on the basis of a draw of lots, officials said.
Hours later, the grand old party's top leadership swung into action to pacify the disgruntled lawmakers. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge appointed senior leaders Bhupinder Singh Hooda and D K Shivakumar to engage with the six MLAs, who are reportedly "disappointed" with the working style of Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and are seeking his replacement.
(With inputs from PTI)
More to follow...