Published 15:07 IST, July 27th 2020
Rajasthan HC junks BJP's plea against BSP-Congress merger amid whip against Gehlot
In a setback to the Opposition BJP, the Rajasthan High Court, on Monday, dismissed the plea filed by BJP opposing the merger of 6 BSP MLAs into Congress
In a setback to the Opposition BJP, the Rajasthan High Court, on Monday, dismissed the plea filed by BJP opposing the merger of 6 Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLAs into Congress in the state. This move occurs after the BSP had issued a whip to its 6 MLAs instructing them to vote against the Congress in the event of a 'No Confidence Motion' or any other proceedings in the Rajasthan Assembly session, failing which they would be disqualified. All six BSP MLAs had merged with Congress in September 2019 - which has been challenged by the BJP and BSP.
Plea challenging merger junked
Speaker withdraws his SC plea
Earlier in the day, Rajasthan Assembly Speaker CP Joshi withdrew his plea from Supreme Court against the High Court order asking him to defer his decision on disqualification notices issued to former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot and 18 other Congress MLAs. The High Court has stayed the disqualification notice issued to Pilot & his 18 MLAs till Monday, reserving its order till the Supreme Court plea has been heard. Pilot and his 18 MLAs now face disqualification, as the Congress demands reconvening the Assembly soon. Gehlot has proposed 31 July but has not yet received the go-ahead from the Governor.
Governor seeks clarification on Assembly proposal
Returning CM Ashok Gehlot's proposal to him, Governor Kalraj Mishra has asked if Gehlot wants a trust vote in the state assembly, as it was not mentioned in the proposal to reconvene the Assembly on July 31. Mishra has suggested Gehlot to give 21-day notice to convene the Assembly as it would be difficult to call all the MLAs at such a short time. All 19 MLAs of Pilot's faction including Pilot himself are spread around the Delhi-Haryana region, with the SOG hunting some of them to issue notices.
Rajasthan crisis
Pilot & his MLAs rebelled when Rajasthan's Special Operations Group (SOG) issued notice to Pilot in connection with the alleged involvement of BJP leaders for toppling the state government with BJP members. In response, Pilot and 18 MLAs arrived in Delhi, reducing the Congress' numbers from 107 to 88. Though Gehlot has submitted a letter of 104 MLAs' support, the Congress also issued disqualification notices Pilot & his 18 MLAs from the Assembly and sacked Pilot as Deputy CM, PCC chief and cabinet posts.
The Congress which is split into two factions stands as such - Gehlot camp and Pilot camp. Gehlot enjoys the support of Congress (81), BTP (2), BSP(6) CPM (2), RLD (1), and Independent (12) - taking his total to 104 MLAs, while his rival Sachin Pilot enjoys the support of 19 MLAs including himself. BJP currently has 72 MLAs, with the support of RLP (3) and one Independent MLA in the house of 200 members.
Updated 15:07 IST, July 27th 2020