Nabam Tuki, who was restored as the chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh by the Supreme Court on Wednesday, was today asked by the Governor to take a floor test by July 16 to prove his majority in the state Assembly. Speaking to The Wire from Itanagar on Sunday morning, Tuki said, “The party is supreme”.
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He also said that the proceedings will be recorded on video throughout, and the vote would be by division and not by voice vote.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Tuki said he would sail through the floor test, but needed “at least 10 to 15 days”.
“I will get the required numbers”.
“Instead of leveling political allegations, the Congress Party would also do well to reflect what was the reason of dissatisfaction that their own leaders and MLAs walked out of their party and merged with another party”, BJP leader Nalin Kohli told ANI. On voluntary resignation from the party, they would lose their seat in the house. He said, “Both Tuki and Pul will be the advisers of my government”.
Reliable sources hinted that the situation started turning around on Friday evening, when the Congress high command stepped in and asked Tuki to save the government.
In case a floor test takes place, the Congress is tipped to win the trial of strength. With Tuki having the support of only 15 of the initial 47 MLAs, the party’s national leadership agreed to the initial demand made by the rebels to remove Tuki. In a snub to the saffron party, 30 Congress rebels on Saturday walked back to their party fold after Nabam Tuki resigned to pave way for Khandu. “As of now, there is no question of stepping down. But since the Congress is a large family, which may have a tu-tu-main-main among its members once in a while, we will have to find a solution”, he said. “I am not the authority”.
Pema was elected leader of the Congress in the Arunachal Pradesh assembly yesterday. “I have also appealed to Pul to support the confidence motion”. Pul even parades 42 of his MLAs in front of the press in Guwahati. They all say they are against Tuki.
Tuki has been battling for his post since December 2015, after he faced a rebellion within his own party. The BJP was supporting former the Congress rebel Kalikho Pul-led government in the state.
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The Congress leader said, “First you use the number game, misuse the office of the Governor to topple a democratically elected Government, then you mis-use the instrumentalities of the State in order to change the facts on the ground and then you claim that you are democratic”.
