Tamilisai Soundararajan asks Puducherry CM to prove majority on February 22

Puducherry: Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan on Thursday directed Chief Minister V Narayansamy to prove his majority in the Assembly on February 22.

Hours after taking additional charge as Lieutenant Governor of the union territory, she directed the Congress-led government to prove its majority.

The direction came amid claims by the opposition parties that the Congress-led government slipped into minority after one more party MLA quit the party on Tuesday.

The lieutenant governor, in an official communication, said the session of the legislative assembly shall be summoned on February 22 with a single agenda of ascertaining whether the government continues to enjoy the confidence of the House.

She directed that voting on the agenda shall take place by show of hands. The entire proceedings before the legislative assembly shall be videographed. The floor test shall be conducted by 5 pm on February 22, and the proceedings shall not be adjourned/delayed or suspended at any cost. After Soundararajan, who is the governor of Telangana, was sworn in as the incharge lieutenant governor at Raj Nivas here, both the chief minister and the leader of opposition called on her separately. All India NR Congress (AINRC) founder-leader N Rangasamy, who is the leader of opposition, claimed that the government had lost its majority after four of the MLAs of the ruling party resigned in the last 25 days. He also pointed out that a legislator of the ruling party was disqualified last year.

The opposition MLAs led by Rangasamy told Soundararajan that the government had lost its legitimacy to continue and requested her to direct the government to prove the majority in the House.

Both the government and the opposition have 14 MLAs in 30-member Assembly. There are three nominated members and all the three belong to BJP. Five seats fell vacant after resignation of four MLAs and disqualification of one MLA. The Congress party now has 10 seats. The DMK, which has three seats and an independent, are supporting the Congress government. AINRC has seven MLAs and its ally AIADMK four. Another ally BJP has three members, all nominated. The ruling Congress maintains that it still enjoys majority in the House and has accused the BJP of engineering defections. Soundararajan was given additional charge of lieutenant governor on Tuesday after Kiran Bedi was removed from the post.

Narayansamy welcomed Bedi's removal and termed it as people's victory. They have been at loggerheads since the former IPS officer was appointed as lieutenant governor over four years ago.

Assembly elections in Puducherry are due to be held in May this year along with the elections in neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Kerala. (IANS)