Rejecting the conditions laid down by Governor Kalraj Mishra for holding the Assembly session, the Congress government in Rajasthan on Tuesday sent yet another revised proposal to Raj Bhavan to summon the House for a sitting from July 31. The Cabinet note did not mention if the government would seek a vote of confidence during the session.
After the Governor twice returned the Cabinet’s recommendation to the call for an Assembly session, the government sent in a third proposal.
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In his last missive on Monday, Mr. Mishra said only a written undertaking on the trust vote as an agenda of the session could form the basis for summoning the House on short notice.
A Cabinet meeting, presided over by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot at his official residence in Jaipur, deliberated on the specific conditions put forward by the Governor for a 21-day notice to enable all MLAs to attend the proceedings, video recording and live telecast if there is a floor test and precautions against the spread of COVID-19 during the sitting.
No going back
According to official sources, the new Cabinet note drafted in consultation with all Ministers, did not mention whether a vote of confidence would be sought during the session. The government has, however, insisted that the session should begin on July 31, the date it proposed earlier. “The Cabinet wants the Assembly session from July 31. We are sticking to our [original] demand,” Transport Minister Pratap Singh Khachariawas told reporters after the meeting.
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He said the government hoped that the Governor would approve the proposal while respecting the Constitution, which had clearly defined his role to function with the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers.
Mr. Khachariawas said the government did not want any confrontation with the Governor and said the latter could have set a date for the session, as 10 days had already passed since the government proposed a sitting of the Assembly.
Asked about the session's agenda, the Minister said it was for the Assembly’s Business Advisory Committee to decide.
“The Governor is not empowered to raise repeated queries in this manner. Yet, we are giving a reply out of respect for him as the head of our family,” Mr. Khachariawas said.
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While facing the crisis created by the rebellion of former Deputy CM Sachin Pilot and 18 other MLAs, the Congress has alleged that Mr. Mishra was acting “under pressure” from the BJP government at the Centre.
Returning the first proposal, Mr. Mishra had sought clarifications on six points. While returning the second proposal, the Governor stated in his missive that though the government's statements to the media had made it clear that it wanted to move a confidence motion, the Cabinet advice had not made any mention of this.
AICC general secretary Avinash Pande, who is in Jaipur, meanwhile, launched a scathing attack on the Governor through a series of tweets, alleging that he “does not seem to be healthy” given his biased thinking. Mr. Pande said Mr. Mishra should recover from the “infection of unilateral thinking” and give his consent for convening the Assembly session.
Meanwhile, BJP MLA Mandan Dilawar filed a fresh writ petition in the Rajasthan High Court on Tuesday challenging the Assembly Speaker's decision to reject his complaint over six Bahujan Samaj Party MLAs joining the Congress. The petition will come up for hearing on Wednesday.
