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Uttarakhand floor test on May 10, says Supreme Court

The results of the floor test will be produced before the Supreme Court on May 11 at 10.30 am by the principal secretary in a sealed cover.

New Delhi/Dehradun: The political seesaw on Uttarakhand continued on Friday with the Supreme Court ordering a floor test to be held in the Assembly on Tuesday (May 10) for deposed Congress chief minister Harish Rawat to prove his majority.

Without giving any relief to the nine dissident Congress MLAs, the court made it clear they would not be allowed to vote as proceedings under Sche-dule 10 of the Constitution for defection was pending against them.

The Supreme Court ordered that President’s Rule be lifted between 10.30 am and 1 pm a.m. and 1 pm on Tuesday to pave the way for the floor test and that it would be back in operation immediately after the floor test ended at 1 pm. The results of the floor test will be produced before the Supreme Court on May 11 at 10.30 am by the principal secretary in a sealed cover.

The seesaw continued as the Uttarakhand high court in Nainital will on Saturday hear a petition by the rebel MLAs challenging their disqualification under the anti-defection law by the Speaker. The status of the MLAs will incidentally be crucial. If the high court refuses to allow the dissident MLAs to vote, the balance could shift towards the former CM, Mr Rawat. The Congress, that has 27 MLAs, claims to have the support of six more MLAs, including one of the UKD(P), two BSP members and three Independents.

If the nine rebels are not allowed to vote, with 28 MLAs, the situation could get tricky for the BJP. Some BJP leaders claimed two members, including one from the BSP, could tilt in their favour.

Speaking in Dehradun, Mr Rawat welcomed the Supreme Court’s order, saying: “The order reasserts the supremacy of the legislature, which was being challenged, (and) the supremacy of the Speaker in the House. We honour the apex court’s order, which reinforces our faith in the judiciary.” The former CM said he was “ready for the floor test”, and claimed he had the numbers, “despite the BJP’s all-out efforts to lure my MLAs away”.

Mr Harish Rawat is due to be in New Delhi on Monday as he has been summoned to the CBI for questioning over the sting operation on alleged attempts at horse-trading while his government was in trouble.

Saffron strategists are not happy over the scenario that is developing in the hill state. One argued that if Mr Rawat pulled off a victory, it would be a “major embarrassment for us... and if he fails he will play the victim card”. He felt the entire strategy planned by party general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya “should have been rejected” by the BJP. If the high court stops the rebels from voting, they will stand nowhere. It is unlikely the BJP will get them into its fold and “ghar wapsi” is virtually impossible.

As per the Supreme Court’s directions, if Mr Rawat wins the trust vote he will become chief minister again, but if he loses the vote in the Assembly on May 10, it will be up to the governor to invite the leader of the party that claims majority support to form the government.

Earlier, attorney-general Mukul Rohatgi submitted that the Centre, the petitioners challenging the high court verdict, had no objection to a floor test in the Assembly. Senior counsels Kapil Sibal, Rajeev Dhavan and Abhishek “Manu” Singhvi also agreed to hold the floor test under the supervision of the Supreme Court.

Taking note of the agreement, the bench of Justices Dipak Misra and Shiva Kirti Singh said in its order: “A special session of the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly be summoned/convened on 10th May 2016, commencing 11.00 am. The only agenda in the Assembly would be the vote of confidence sought by Mr Harish Singh Rawat. Apart from the said agenda, nothing else shall be discussed in the Assembly. The proceedings in the Assembly are expected to be absolutely peaceful and without any disturbance. This court expects that all the members and all concerned with the affairs of the Assembly shall abide by the same in letter and spirit.”

( Source : Deccan Chronicle with agency inputs )
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