Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Kalikho Pul has won the floor test in the Arunachal Pradesh legislative Assembly at Naharlagun on Thursday even as the motion was supported by 40 legislators including the Chief Minister.
A total of 17 Congress legislators including former Chief Minister Nabam Tuki remained absent in the first day of the two day session of House, which got underway today and passed the vote of confidence motion without any opposition.
State Chief Minister Kalikho Pul, who was sworn in as the new Chief Minister of the state on February 19, moved the motion seeking the confidence of the House and newly elected Speaker of the House Wangli lowang put the motion of confidence on a voice vote and urged the legislators to raise their hands whoever wants to support Pul. A total of 40 legislators including Pul supported the motion forcing the Speaker to announce that the motion was passed by 40 votes without any opposition.
It may be mentioned here that the effective strength of the House in Arunachal Pradesh is 58 now as two members are facing resignation.
Pul assumed the charge as Chief Minister of the state on late February 19 evening after the Governor administered the oath of office and secrecy to Pul at the Raj Bhavan the same evening. The development took place after President Pranab Mukherjee, earlier on the same day, approved the Union Cabinet’s recommendation for revocation of President’s rule in Arunachal Pradesh.
On Wednesday, the Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) had termed the two-day session convened by the Governor as illegal and unconstitutional and issued a whip to all its MlAs-elected on the Indian National Congress (INC) ticket of the Sixth Arunachal Pradesh legislative Assembly-not to attend or participate in the said session of the House.
“I was delighted to hear from the Chief Minister that this Government has to be referred not as “My Government” but as “Our Government”…. I therefore accept the Chief Minister’s suggestion to call this Government as “our Government” so that Government formally includes both “representatives of people” and “people themselves,” said AP Governor JP Rajkhowa while delivering his speech.
Rajkhowa said that the House will have a full-fledged Budget session in the month of March, 2016 for passing the budget for the year 2016-17. “The Finance Minister will deal with detailed financial and developmental issues when presenting the Budget,” he said.
“As far as public finances of the state are concerned, our government shall make every effort to curb financial profligacy. Wasteful expenditure will be identified, minimized and eliminated. Funds will be basically deployed for creation of assets and human resources. A slim Government is always a speedier government. A flabby one besides moving at a snail’s pace becomes a breeding ground for corruption and inefficiency,” the Governor said. He said that a permanent Public Finance Watchdog Committee will be constituted to advise on augmenting receipts as well as on rationalising expenditure to function as an Emergency lamp for the Government so that errors are culled out when just being committed.