Cong claims victory in Uttarakhand, SC to declare result tomorrow
The Congress claimed victory in Uttarakhand after a crucial trust vote in the assembly on Tuesday though the final results will be declared only on Wednesday by the SC. Sources said the Congress managed 33 votes, two more than the 31 required in a house with an effective strength of 62. The assembly speaker votes only in the event of a tie. Full Coverage: Uttarakhand crisis
The Congress claimed victory in Uttarakhand after a tight trust vote in the assembly on Tuesday though the official result will be declared only on Wednesday by the Supreme Court.
Sources said the Congress managed 33 votes, two more than the 31 required in a house with an effective strength of 62. The BJP is said to have managed 28, the number of MLAs it has in the assembly.
The top court – which ordered the floor test to end the nearly two-month-long impasse in the hill state -- will take the final call after watching the video of the voting and examining the report of its observer Jaidev Singh. He is likely to submit the report to the court on Wednesday.
Sacked chief minister Harish Rawat – facing a challenge to stay in power after nine of his MLAs rebelled in March – refused to comment on the outcome of the vote though other Congress leaders said the party has managed the requisite numbers.
“(The) clouds of uncertainty will vanish soon,” Rawat said and thanked the top court which had ordered the trial of strength and also upheld the Uttarakhand high court’s ruling barring the nine Congress rebels from voting.
The tone and tenor of BJP leaders also pointed to a Congress win.
“We have won in principle. But we may be behind in the number’s game,” BJP legislator Ganesh Joshi said after the voting, held during a two-hour window when president’s rule was lifted following the apex court’s ruling.
A Congress victory will pave the way for the reinstatement of Rawat’s government in the hill state which was placed under president’s rule by the BJP-led Centre, sparking a controversy over alleged attempts to topple elected governments in opposition-ruled states.
Also read | As it happened: Uttrakhand floor test
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, one of the fiercest critics of the Narendra Modi-led government, was among the first to react.
“Uttarakhand floor test outcome is a huge setback to Modi Govt. Hope they will stop toppling Govts now,” he said in a tweet.
BSP chief Mayawati handed Rawat the advantage in the morning by deciding to back the Congress. The BSP has two MLAs who are part of the Progressive Democratic Front (PDF) that also includes three independent and a lone Uttarakhand Kranti Dal legislator.
The voting began amidst dramatic circumstances with a rebel BJP legislator Bhim Lal Arya switching over to Congress side while Congress MLA Rekha Arya appeared to have crossed over to the BJP.
She entered the assembly with BJP MLAs waving the victory sign.
Before the voting, BJP leaders and legislators held a 10-minute long meeting and emerged shouting, “Bharat mata ki jai ho’. Party general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya said the BJP will win the floor test.
The Centre clamped President’s rule on March 27, just a day before Rawat was to take a trust vote in the assembly.
Rawat challenged the President’s rule in the Uttarakhand high court, which on March 29 ordered a trust vote two days later. But a division bench of the high court stayed the single bench ruling.
On April 21, the division bench headed by then chief justice JM Joseph revoked President’s rule restoring Rawat as CM and asking him to seek trust vote on April 29.
The next day, Centre got a stay from the Supreme Court against the HC order giving Rawat a place in the history books as being helm of a state for shortest period – less than 24 hours – in which he held two Cabinet meetings and took 11 populist decisions.
Immediately after the trust vote, Congress leaders and workers celebrated at the Rajiv Bhawan, the party’s state headquarters located in the heart of Dehradun.
“Aap thoda rukiye, aaj yahan bhari jashn hoga (Wait a while, there will be big celebrations here),” said Hazi Mohammad Akram, a Congress leader from Nainital.
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