Chandigarh, September 16
With about 40 Congress MLAs seeking removal of Captain Amarinder Singh as the Chief Minister of the state, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab has demanded the Punjab Vidhan Sabha Speaker Rana KP Singh, to conduct a floor test of the Punjab government to prove its majority. In a statement issued from the party headquarters here on Thursday, senior leader of the AAP and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Harpal Singh Cheema said, “The state government has gone into minority and a floor test is the need of the hour; as Capt Amarinder Singh has lost support of the people of Punjab as well as the Congress party and its MLAs.”
Cheema said the Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh-led Congress government has clearly split and Captain has lost the trust of most of his Congress MLAs. He said as a result, the ruling Congress in Punjab has lost the majority to run and retain the government as per the number of MLAs. “The two factions, which have been publicly blaming and distrusting each other for a long time, have been wielding power over the number of MLAs. In such a challenging situation, the government of Capt Amarinder Singh has lost its majority,” he said, adding that being in minority, CM Capt Amarinder Singh has no moral or constitutional right to remain in government.
The AAP leader said that the majority of the Congress MLAs were seeking removal of Capt Amarinder Singh for his incompetence and failure in running the state. “The Chief Minister does not even have a majority in his cabinet so he cannot be the head of government. The Punjab Vidhan Sabha Speaker should immediately conduct a majority test in the House to know how many MLAs are with Capt Amarinder Singh’s government,” he said.
Incidentally, a delegation of the Aam Aadmi Party led by Harpal Singh Cheema had met the Governor of Punjab, last month; demanding to convene a special session of the Vidhan Sabha, directing Captain Amarinder Singh to prove majority in the house. Taking a dig, Harpal Singh Cheema questioned, “Why Capt Amarinder Singh and Navjot Sidhu not accept the AAP’s challenge of proving majority in the House? Where is Navjot Sidhu’s morality now, why is he keeping mum on the issue?”
He further slammed the rebel ministers and legislators of the Congress, stating why they did not meet the Governor and demand a floor test against Capt Amarinder Singh. “If the rebel Congress MLAs and ministers are true and serious in their stance against Captain, then why don’t they move a motion of no-confidence in the Assembly,” he questioned. Cheema said this proves that these Congress MLAs and ministers, who have been part of the mafia rule for four-and-a-half-years, are now dramatizing and building pressure; only for the sake of chair.
