Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu’s government is in trouble after cross voting by MLAs.
Panchkula, Haryana:
Six Congress MLAs, who voted for the BJP candidate in the Rajya Sabha elections in Himachal Pradesh, today left Haryana and went to an unknown place.
The MLAs, including Rajinder Rana and Ravi Thakur, spent last night in a hotel here and left in a helicopter from Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Panchkula in BJP-ruled Haryana on Wednesday morning, sources said.
The MLA had reached Haryana from Shimla on Tuesday after casting his vote in the Rajya Sabha elections. He is understood to be in touch with the BJP amid signs of crisis over the Congress government in Himachal Pradesh.
According to reports, the MLAs are ‘disappointed’ with the working style of Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and are demanding his replacement.
Mr Thakur on Tuesday rejected Sukhu’s claims that some party MLAs had been “kidnapped” and said he could “go anywhere”, referring to his visit to Panchkula.
In Shimla, Mr Sukhu alleged that “five to six” Congress MLAs were “kidnapped” and taken away by the CRPF and Haryana Police.
Speaking to reporters outside the guest house in Panchkula on Tuesday evening, Mr Thakur had said, “We are roaming around…this is my personal time, so I can go anywhere.” When asked about Himachal Chief Minister’s claim that some MLAs were brought here after being “kidnapped”, the Lahaul and Spiti MLA said, “No”.
“In the interest of Himachal Pradesh and Lahaul and Spiti, we supported Harsh Mahajan ji (BJP candidate) so that we can get more budget (from the Centre),” he said while replying to a question on the floor test in the Himachal Assembly. It is learned that Mr. Thakur, Mr. Rana and four other Congress MLAs have reached the PWD Guest House in Panchkula. Later, he was reportedly taken to a hotel.
In a surprise upset for the ruling Congress in Himachal Pradesh, the BJP on Tuesday won the state’s lone Rajya Sabha seat, with its candidate Harsh Mahajan defeating Congress veteran Abhishek Manu Singhvi, apparently setting the stage for a no-confidence motion in the assembly. .
The voting was a tie and both Congress and BJP candidates got 34 votes each, indicating that at least six Congress MLAs voted against the party. Officials said the result was declared on the basis of draw.
In the 68-member Himachal Pradesh Assembly, Congress has 40 MLAs while BJP has 25 MLAs. The remaining three seats are held by independents.
Even before the results were formally declared, discussions about BJP bringing a no-confidence motion against the 14-month-old government of Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu have intensified.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
