Dushyant Chautala was the Deputy Chief Minister in the previous BJP-led government in Haryana.The Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) led by Dushyant Chautala, an ally of the BJP till recently, has written to the Governor, calling for a floor test in the state assembly. In a letter addressed to Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, Chautala cited the recent resignations and withdrawals of support, and said that they have left the ruling BJP alliance on the verge of minority status. He made the move following Congress’ inaction in the matter.
“I urge you to direct the appropriate authority to immediately call for a floor test to determine the government’s majority,” Chautala emphasized in his letter to the Governor.
On Tuesday, three Independent MLAs Sombir Sangwan (representing Dadri), Randhir Singh Gollen (from Pundri), and Dharampal Gonder (of Nilokheri) withdrew support for the BJP government. A day later Chautala announced JJP’s support for the Congress in a bid to topple the Nayab Singh Saini-led BJP government.
Branding Saini as a “weak Chief Minister,” Chautala, who was the Deputy Chief Minister in the previous BJP-led government in Haryana, blamed him for the defection of the Independent MLAs to the Congress camp.
Addressing the media in Hisar, Chautala said that the Saini government has lost its moral authority to govern and should either prove its majority in the House or resign on ethical grounds. He indicated that his party would write to the governor, urging him to demand a floor test from Saini to ascertain the government’s legitimacy.
In response to Chautala’s offer, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, the leader of the opposition Congress, challenged him to demonstrate the support of his 10 MLAs before making any claims to topple the government. Hooda also accused Chautala of being complicit with the BJP during its tenure and questioned his sudden allegiance to the opposition cause.
“He (Dushyant Chautala) is saying this after staying in power with the BJP for four and a half years. Everyone in Haryana knows well that he is fighting the election on all 10 seats as the B-team of the BJP. If he wants to prove people wrong, he should parade his 10 MLAs before the governor and demand the dismissal of the government,” Hooda told reporters.
Chautala brushed aside Hooda’s remarks, asserting that it’s Hooda’s responsibility as the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) to initiate the process.
“He (Hooda) is the LoP, he should initiate it. I’ll write to the Governor and seek imposition of President’s rule. If Hooda doesn’t take the initiative, it will only be because of the ED and CBI cases he is facing,” Chautala told Indian Express.
He added that if Hooda were to bring a no-confidence motion against the government, they would issue a whip asking all their MLAs to support the motion. Once such a directive is issued, no MLA could oppose it without jeopardising their membership in the state assembly, Chautala reassured.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, while campaigning in Sirsa, maintained that his government enjoys majority support in the House despite the withdrawal of support by the three MLAs. Saini exuded confidence that neither the JJP nor the Congress could pose a threat to his government’s stability.
On February 23, the Congress, under the leadership of Bhupinder Singh Hooda, tabled a no-confidence motion against the BJP-JJP coalition government led by Manohar Lal Khattar. The motion was defeated in a voice vote.
Then on March 12, the BJP replaced Khattar with Nayab Singh Saini as the Chief Minister of Haryana. The next day, Saini managed to secure a vote of confidence.