ITANAGAR, Dec 17 - Thirty-three MLAs of the 60-member Arunachal Pradesh Assembly, cutting across party affiliations, today adopted a motion on �composite floor test,� showing their �no-confidence� in the Nabam Tuki-led Congress government in the State and choosing rebel Congress leader Kalikho Pul as the new �Leader of the House�.
A day after �removing� Nabam Rebia from the post of the Speaker of the Assembly by adopting a resolution with �more than majority support� in a makeshift Assembly premises in a community hall at Naharlagun, the Opposition BJP and rebel Congress MLAs met in a hotel as the gates of the Assembly remained locked for the second consecutive day today.
Deputy Speaker Tenzing Norbu Thongdok said that today�s new venue had to be chosen with �due consent� from Governor JP Rajkhowa, as the makeshift venue where Speaker Rebia was �impeached�, was vandalised by miscreants last night and the MLAs were not allowed to enter the Assembly premises, as the gates of the Secretariat remained locked since yesterday.
The �composite floor test� motion, moved by 11 BJP MLAs and two Independents, was passed by all 33 members, including 20 from Congress, by voice vote.
Deputy Speaker Thongdok, who was in the Chair, did not participate in the voting as per tradition.
Even though the Deputy Speaker invited the Chief Minister or any Minister to speak against the motion, the 26 Congress legislators, including CM Nabam Tuki and his Council of Ministers, as declared previously, abstained from attending the House session summoned by Governor JP Rajkhowa for the second successive day today, dubbing it as �unconstitutional�.
After completion of the exercise, the Deputy Speaker declared the result after counting the signatures put in favour of the motion and announced that Kalikho Pul has been chosen as the new Leader of the House.
He said that the entire proceedings recorded on video would be sent to the Governor, who would invite the new Chief Minister and his Council of Ministers to take the oath of office shortly.
Bringing in the motion, Leader of Opposition Tamiyo Taga alleged that since April this year, the members of the Sixth Legislative Assembly have been experiencing lack of confidence in the Council of Ministers led by Nabam Tuki.
�Because of his misgovernance and mismanagement, nepotism and corruption, members were gradually withdrawing their support from Tuki. It is a Congress government with absolute majority of 47 members, but looking at the situation we were compelled to bring this composite floor test motion,� Taga said.
The Opposition leader maintained that the financial health of the State has deteriorated under Tuki, because of which contractors� payments, students� stipends and employees� salaries could not be paid on a regular basis.
