New Delhi: Haryana’s newly appointed Chief Minister, Nayab Singh Saini said on Tuesday that a letter of support from 48 MLAs has been presented to the governor, urging the immediate convening of an assembly session on Wednesday so that the BJP government can prove its majority in the House. Saini took oath as chief minister on Tuesday hours after the surprise resignation of Manohar Lal Khattar from the post, along with his cabinet ministers.
Nayab Singh Saini told PTI, after assuming charge and holding a meeting of his cabinet, “We have urged the governor to convene the assembly session tomorrow when we will prove our majority on the floor of the House.”
Notably, when asked how many MLAs are in support of the government, Saini, who is also Haryana BJP chief, said, “We gave a letter of support of 48 MLAs to the governor.”
In the 90-member state assembly, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) holds 41 seats and has additional support from six independent members, as well as lone MLA Gopal Kanda of the Haryana Lokhit Party. Meanwhile, the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) commands a contingent of 10 MLAs in the House.
BJP-JJP Alliance Ends Over Differences In Seat Sharing Arrangement For Lok Sabha Polls
On the opposition front, the Congress party holds 30 seats, while the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) has one MLA. Amid differences over seat sharing for the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP’s alliance with the JJP has come apart. Saini said that in the cabinet meeting, a resolution was adopted to thank the works done by the outgoing Khattar cabinet.
“During the past nine-and-a-half years, he (Khattar) gave new direction to Haryana, presented example of good governance. ‘Haryana Ek Haryanvi Ek’ was not a mere slogan, but equitable development was carried out”, PTI quoted Saini as saying.
Saini lauded the Khattar administration for its historic achievements across various domains, citing initiatives such as the online transfer policy for teachers and merit-based job allocation. Expressing gratitude, Saini extended his thanks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP chief J P Nadda, and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for entrusting him with this new responsibility.
“The new responsibility has been entrusted on me…we will work with full dedication and deliver on the expectations of people”, he said. He also said challenges come with responsibility and he is ready to face them.
Five MLAs — four from the BJP and one independent — were also sworn in as ministers. However, former home minister and six-term MLA from Ambala Cantt, Anil Vij, has not found a place in the new cabinet. Nayab Singh Saini, a 54-year-old OBC leader, was administered the oath of office by Governor Bandaru Dattatreya at the ceremony held at the Raj Bhawan.
Earlier in the day, Manohar Lal Khattar, along with all 13 other members of the BJP-led council of ministers, tendered their resignations to the governor, coinciding with the arrival of a team of the party’s central observers in Chandigarh.