New Delhi: Barely a day into his new role, Haryana’s Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini initiated a confidence vote in the assembly on Wednesday, with the Speaker allocating a two-hour window for debate. The session witnessed a dramatic turn as Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) MLAs, including Devender Singh Babli, Ram Kumar Gautam, Ishwar Singh, Ram Niwas, and Jogi Ram Sihag, exited the chamber when the trust vote commenced, adhering to their party’s directive to abstain from the vote.
Amidst these developments, the former state home minister Anil Vij marked his presence in the assembly. The motion’s urgency sparked queries from Congress MLAs, with senior leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda questioning the need for the swift convening of the session and alleging inadequate notice for the MLAs.
His colleague B B Batra echoed the sentiment, seeking clarity on the session’s prompt scheduling. In response, Speaker Gian Chand Gupta dismissed the notion of an emergency and maintained that it was incumbent upon the members to be punctual. He suggested that the discussion proceed while awaiting the arrival of any delayed legislators.
The debate heated up as Congress MLA Raghuvir Singh Kadian criticized the trust vote and launched into a tirade against the state government, citing a litany of issues from farmers’ distress to rampant corruption and soaring unemployment.
Kadian portrayed CM Saini as a well-intentioned leader thrust into a scapegoat role during turbulent times, advocating for presidential rule and predicting dissent within the government ranks if a secret ballot were conducted. Rao Dan Singh, another Congress voice, questioned the haste behind the trust vote, pointing to recent accolades for the former CM Manohar Lal Khattar by the Prime Minister, only to be followed by a sudden leadership change.
He argued that the populace is resolved to displace the BJP government, accusing the party of resorting to leadership shuffles as a tactic to counteract public discontent and past failures. Singh also insinuated that despite apparent rifts, the BJP and JJP might still be covertly aligned, suggesting that the government’s credibility has eroded in the public eye.
Independent MLA Ranjit Singh Chautala, now a minister under Saini, lauded Prime Minister Modi as a ‘Jannayak’ or people’s leader, while casting the Congress as a party in disarray, with leaders abandoning ship and shunning electoral contests.
In the 90-seat assembly, the BJP holds 41 seats and is bolstered by the support of most independents and the Haryana Lokhit Party’s Gopal Kanda. The JJP’s 10 MLAs, the main opposition Congress’s 30, and a single Indian National Lok Dal member complete the assembly’s composition.
This political reshuffle came after Nayab Singh Saini was declared Haryana’s new chief minister by the BJP, following the unexpected resignation of Manohar Lal Khattar and his cabinet.