Act Fast To Stop Horse-Trading, Supreme Court Tells Centre
NEW DELHI : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is reported to be getting ready to form government in Delhi, and is waiting for an invite from Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung in this regard.There is speculation that the invite could come as early as today.Top party sources said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given his nod for forming the government in Delhi, saying there would be nothing unethical in doing so if the party is invited by the LG.
The BJP started fancying its chances after LG Jung last week, in his report to the President, sought permission from Pranab Mukherjee to allow him to invite BJP to form government in Delhi.The BJP is currently the single largest party in the Delhi Legislative Assembly with 28 seats. The Aam Aadmi Party has 27 MLAs and Congress has eight.BJP, along with its ally Akali Dal’s one MLA, has 29 MLAs in the Assembly and it will require support of five more legislators to prove majority in the House.Sources said expelled AAP MLA Vinod Kumar Binny and Independent MLA from Mundka Rambir Shokeen are ready to support BJP which will leave the party short of three MLAs to reach the magic figure.
Once the LG sends the invitation to the party, the BJP will hold a meet and finalise the government formation, including choosing the chief minister candidate.Janakpuri-Uttam Nagar MLA Jagdish Mukhi is said to be the frontrunner in this rae.Asked about the political developments in the capital, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the matter was between the LG and President, to whom Jung wrote the letter.
“I have nothing to say. It is between the President and the LG. The President has not communicated anything to me. You please ask the LG,” he said.Singh, however, refused to comment on allegations of MLA poaching against the BJP.The Aam Aadmi Party Monday released a video which showed Delhi BJP vice president Sher Singh Dagar allegedly offering a plum post and money to AAP legislator Dinesh Mohaniya in a bid to help the BJP to take power in Delhi.
Delhi has been under President’s rule since AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal resigned as chief minister on February 14 after 49 days in office.The BJP won 31 seats in the 70-member house but now has 28 legislators after three were elected to the Lok Sabha in the general elections held in April-May.
Meanwhile, the ruling BJP today told the Supreme Court that the “political process” of government formation in Delhi has begun and it is waiting for an invitation from the Lieutenant Governor. The party told a five-judge Constitutional bench that it would “consider the option of forming the government” the moment it received an invite. The court was hearing a petition for Delhi polls by Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), a day after the party released a video that it claims shows the BJP offering its legislator four crores to switch sides.
Mr Kejriwal urged the judges to take note of the sting to stop the Lieutenant Governor from asking the BJP to form a government. The court said it would take it up in the next hearing. In the 17-minute AAP video, the BJP’s Sher Singh Dagar meets at his home on Sunday evening with AAP legislator Dinesh Mohaniya. Mr Dagar did not deny the meeting, but said the video was edited and he had never offered money.
Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung recommended that the BJP, as the single largest party, should be invited to form government and take a floor test. The BJP and its allies have 29 seats between them and need at least five more. AAP has been accusing the BJP of trying to fill the gap by offering its legislators money and posts to cross over. AAP believes that in a new election, it will perform well, and alleges that the BJP is avoiding facing the voters because in its first three months in power at the Centre, the party has failed to deliver on fighting corruption and checking rising food prices.
Delhi has been under central rule since February, when Mr Kejriwal quit as Chief Minister after failing to push his Jan Lokpal Bill. Later that month, the party moved the Supreme Court for another round of polls.
