Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot will hold another cabinet meeting on Saturday to discuss the objections raised by Governor Kalraj Mishra to the state government’s demand to convene an Assembly session amid the political crisis in the state, NDTV reported. The meeting will take place at 12:30 pm.
Gehlot and Congress legislators are likely to rework their resolution in favour of the Assembly session and submit it to the governor.
On Friday, Mishra had said that the state government’s demand for an Assembly session on such short notice and without a clear reason was not justified since 21-day prior notice is required for the same.
Mishra raised six points regarding the state government’s demand for an Assembly session, according to a statement from his office. He said that the Gehlot-led government’s request for an Assembly session did not mention the date from which the session has to begin and neither does it have the Cabinet’s approval.
The Rajasthan governor also asked why Gehlot’s government wanted to convene an Assembly session to prove its majority when it claims it has the required numbers, according to The Indian Express.
Mishra also asked how the Assembly session would be conducted since the decision on the disqualification of Sachin Pilot’s camp was still pending in court.
The governor said that he will adhere to the Constitution and make his decision. The governor added that the state government must ensure the freedom of all its MLAs.
Rajasthan Congress MLAs, led by Gehlot, staged a protest outside the governor’s residence earlier on Friday, demanding an Assembly session for a trust vote. The MLAs ended their protest after the governor agreed to convene the session. Gehlot had accused Mishra of not agreeing to convene a session because of “pressures from above”.
Gehlot had held another meeting late on Friday, where the MLAs passed a resolution in favour of holding an Assembly session.
The Gehlot-led government in Rajasthan faces the threat of collapse after former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot’s open revolt. Pilot was sacked as the Rajasthan deputy chief minister and as the Congress’ state unit chief on July 14. The next day, Assembly Speaker CP Joshi sent disqualification notices to Pilot and 18 other legislators. In relief for Pilot and 18 dissident MLAs, the Rajasthan High Court on Friday stayed action on the disqualification notices served to them.
Before the political crisis erupted, the Congress had the backing of 125 MLAs in the 200-member Rajasthan Assembly, including 107 of its own legislators. As many as 13 Independents and five MLAs from other parties support it. The majority mark in the Rajasthan Assembly is 101. The BJP has 72 legislators and has the support of three Rashtriya Loktantrik Party MLAs.
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