BackPunjab: AAP govt to take floor test on 22 Sept to prove majority
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in the state had earlier claimed that some of its MLAs were approached by the BJP with an offer of ₹25 crore to each of them.
PremiumAs controversy around Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann missing a Delhi bound flight from Frankfurt and the circumstances leading to it do the rounds, the CM took to micro-blogging site Twitter on Monday to notify that his government is set to call a special session of the Vidhan Sabha to take a floor test on 22 September.
The floor test, according to CM Mann is being conducted to prove its majority amid AAP MLAs' allegations of ‘Operation Lotus’ in the state.
The development comes weeks after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also called for a floor test in the Delhi legislative assembly, after claims of defection arose.
“The faith of the people has no value in any currency of the world... On Thursday, 22 September, a special session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha will be convened and this will be proved legally by submitting a vote of confidence... Long live the revolution..!" Mann tweeted in Punjabi.
"You must have heard how they tried to contact our MLAs and tried to offer money and other allurements in an attempt to topple the government which was elected with a huge mandate," Mann, who is in Germany, said in a video message in Punjabi.
The Punjab AAP had earlier claimed that at least 10 of its members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) were approached by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with an offer of ₹25 crore each in a bid to topple the state government. A police complaint had also been lodged on 14 September by the Punjab police after AAP MLAs complained of BJP's attempt to poach the Kejriwal-led party politicians.
The complaint was registered by State finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema and other party MLAs. They met DGP Gaurav Yadav and demanded a thorough probe.
Cheema said BJP agents and workers from Delhi and Punjab had allegedly tried to break away 35 MLAs from AAP to topple the government in Punjab. He accused the BJP of murdering democracy by toppling elected governments in various states after using central agencies like the CBI and the ED and also by offering money.
But the "Operation Lotus" has completely failed in Punjab, said Cheema.
The finance minister claimed the BJP is threatened by the rising graph of AAP in other states.
The development comes on a day when former Punjab Chief minister Amarinder Singh, also called captain, who defected from the then ruling Punjab's party Congress to form a party of his own, is in Delhi to meet JP Nadda and join BJP.
Notably BJP has earned the reputation of toppling democratically elected state governments by means of horse trading or poaching MLAs, as was evident in Madhya Pradesh, where Kamal Nath government was usurped by BJPs Shivraj Singh Chouhan who now hold the title of being the longest running chief minister of Madhya Pradesh. The debacle was orchestrated by Jyotiraditya Scindia leaving the Congress party taking with him several other MLAs.
A similar debacle was witnessed in Maharashtra after Shiv Sena MLA Eknath Shinde and several other MLAs quit the Uddhav Thackeray government , consequently usurping the ruling government to form an alliance with BJP wherein Shinde took charge as Chief Minister with BJP's Devendra Fadnavis as his Deputy.
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!
