New Delhi: The Madhya Pradesh assembly – which was supposed to see a floor test on Monday morning – has been adjourned till March 26 due to fears over coronavirus. The governor, Lalji Tandon, finished his customary address to the legislative assembly on the first day of the Budget session within a minute and left the House.
Before leaving the House, the governor urged the legislators to follow constitutional traditions, maintain dignity of democracy and act peacefully in the current situation prevailing in the state.
Chief minister Kamal Nath had earlier asked the governor to postpone the session, given the epidemic-related risks.
Kamal Nath calls on governor
Nath had called on the governor late on Sunday night.
Coming out of the Raj Bhavan around 12:20 am, Nath told reporters that the governor had called him for a discussion. “The governor told me that the proceedings of the state assembly should be carried out smoothly. So I told him that I will talk to the speaker in this regard on Monday morning,” he said.
Asked if the floor test will be conducted on Monday as directed by the governor, the chief minister said the speaker will take a decision on this.
Nath said he has already communicated to the governor in writing that his government is ready for the floor test but the MLAs held “captive” should be released first.
After 22 Congress MLAs submitted their resignations last week, Tandon had on Saturday directed Nath to seek a trust vote just after his (governor’s) address on the first day of the Budget session beginning Monday.
The Congress alleges that these 22 MLAs who submitted their resignations are being held “captive” by the BJP.
Madhya Pradesh assembly speaker N.P. Prajapati has accepted the resignations of six of these MLAs.
BJP MLAs return
BJP legislators returned to Bhopal in the early hours of Monday in a chartered plane after spending five days at a resort in Haryana.
The party had taken its MLAs to the Manesar resort on March 10 in a bid to keep its flock together amid the political crisis in Madhya Pradesh.
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The MLAs landed at Bhopal’s Raja Bhoj airport around 2 am. State BJP chief V.D. Sharma and leader of opposition in the assembly Gopal Bhargava, along with other leaders, welcomed them. Sources in the party told PTI the MLAs were taken to a hotel.
Congress MLAs, who were lodged in two resorts in Jaipur, returned to Bhopal on Sunday and are put up in Hotel Courtyard Marriott in MP Nagar locality, about one km from the assembly.
No mention of trust vote in house business list
Holding of a floor test on Monday found no mention in the List of Business (LoB) issued by the state assembly secretariat on Sunday night.
The LoB has mentioned only about the governor’s customary address on the first day of the Budget session and the motion of thanks.
The principal secretary of the Legislative Assembly could not be reached for his reaction despite repeated attempts. However, former minister and an expert on legislative matters, Choudhary Rakesh Singh Chaturvedi told PTI: “Governor is the head of the state while Speaker is the head of the Assembly, who has all powers vested in him. A speaker works as per his discretion and according to the rules and procedures of the House”.
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Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition Gopal Bhargava rushed to meet the governor on Sunday night, after the LoB was released.
“The Congress government wants to evade the floor test. This is unconstitutional as the governor has issued clear directives that the Kamal Nath should seek trust vote just after his (governor’s) address (to the House) on Monday.
“We have conveyed to the governor that the agenda of the state Assembly for Monday doesn’t include this (holding of floor test), and he assured me that a suitable action will be taken,” Bhargava added.
(With PTI inputs)