The special session of the Rajasthan Assembly began on Friday, with the Congress government led by chief minister Ashok Gehlot moving a confidence motion.
The Assembly was adjourned by speaker CP Joshi soon after the session began, and was reconvened at 1pm to take up the confidence motion.
The assembly session comes just days after the top leaders of Congress announced a truce between Gehlot and the rebel faction led by Sachin Pilot. The dissident MLAs (Pilot and 18 others) have now returned to the party fold.
The Congress has said that it is united to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which is planning to bring a no-confidence motion against the Ashok Gehlot government.
The BJP had said on Thursday that the truce is temporary. “This government won’t last long,” former chief minister and BJP leader Vasundhara Raje had said yesterday.
Both Pilot and Raje are present in the House.
{{/usCountry}}Both Pilot and Raje are present in the House.
{{/usCountry}}The Gehlot government has already indicated that it is keen on a floor test despite the truce because the party thinks it is the perfect way to send across a message of unity. A floor test will also give some breather to Gehlot to let him put his house in order since a motion can be moved only once in a session.
With the return of the rebels, the Congress alone has 107 legislators, including the speaker, in the 200-member House where the majority mark is 101. It also appears to have the support of all 13 independents; three of them backed Pilot and have now pledged support to Gehlot. Five MLAs from other parties, too, back the government in the House. On the other hand, the BJP (72) and its ally Rashtriya Loktrantrik Party (3) have a total of 75 seats.
Meanwhile, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) on Thursday issued a whip for the second time to six of its MLAs in Rajasthan to vote against the Congress in any no-confidence motion or any other proceedings in the state Assembly.