Even about a month after the results of the Assembly elections were announced in Gujarat, the state’s MLAs have yet to take the oath of office as they are waiting for an “inauspicious period” to end, The Indian Express reported on Friday.
Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said the ceremony was delayed as the legislators wanted the Assembly session to start after the “month-long inauspicious period that ends on Makar Sankranti”. “So a special session will be called after January 20,” Rupani said at an event on Thursday, according to PTI.
A two-day session will be held to elect the Speaker and for the MLAs to be sworn in, Rupani said, adding that the regular Budget Session will take place on schedule in February.
Meanwhile, Gautam Thaker from the People’s Union for Civil Liberties wrote to Gujarat Governor Om Prakash Kohli and pointed out that the state currently did not have an elected legislative Assembly as the “previous Assembly had been dissolved and the newly elected members have not been given oath”, The Indian Express reported
“Why is the Gujarat government working at such a slow pace?” Thaker said. “Why are MLAs not administered oath of office? Is there a crisis in the government?”
Rupani and his deputy Nitin Patel were sworn in on December 26.
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