The North Eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh is currently witnessing a political showdown. Things came to a head on December 9, when Governor Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa sent a one-page message to the state Legislative Assembly, essentially instructing the House on how to function.
Apart from moving forward the assembly’s Winter Session from January 14 to December 16, he ordered that a resolution seeking the removal of Speaker Nabam Rebia “shall be the first item on the agenda of the House” and that the Deputy Speaker “shall preside over the House from the first moment of (its) first sitting”.
While the Congress, the ruling party in the State, alleged involvement of the Centre behind the Governor’s move, and blamed the Bharatiya Janata of trying to topple Chief Minister Nabam Tuki’s government, the BJP has shrugged its hands of the goings-on in the state and blamed the crisis on the internal faction-fighting in the Congress.
The trouble started brewing when Congress members of the Legislative Assembly started tendering their resignations as ministers were dropped, leading to suspension of some MLAs.
Some of the MLAs moved a notice for the removal of the Deputy Speaker, who is also a Congress MLA, accusing him of anti-party activities. This was followed by some BJP members giving a notice for the removal of the Speaker.
The state was set for a show of strength on January 14 when the Assembly would have reconvened for the Winter Session, but that is when the Governor moved in, precipitating matters.
Trading charges
As expected, Wednesday witnessed high drama when the Assembly was convened as per the Governor's directive. Supporters of Chief Minister Nabam Tuki blocked entry to the Assembly.
Denied entry, his opponents, including BJP MLAs and independents, Congress dissidents, including Deputy Speaker TN Thongdok, “impeached” the Speaker at a meeting elsewhere.
The upheaval in the state also managed to cast a shadow over the national politics too as the Congress disrupted Parliament on Wednesday, accusing Union Minister Kiren Rijiju of conspiring with Rajkhowa in “destabilising the state”.
“It is very unfortunate that unconstitutional attempts are being made to throw out the government,” Leader of Opposition in the Parliament and Congress MP Mallikarjun Kharge said in Lok Sabha. "Efforts are being to destabilise an elected government to bring in a non-Congress government.”
Even BJP’s Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu concurred that it was an “emergency-like situation” in the state but added that it would not be appropriate to discuss the Governor’s conduct in Parliament.
How the North East press sees it
The Arunachal Front’s website has carried multiple stories on the developments including the “bizarre turn of events” on Thursday when rebel Congress MLAs united with their BJP counterparts in a “local hotel” to oust Chief Minister Tuki and elect a rebel as the chief minister instead.
The Guwahati High Court, meanwhile, suspended the Governor’s directive and stayed all proceedings of the “rebel session” and posted the case to another hearing on February 1.
The Shillong Times carried two stories on the same page on Friday, reporting on the High Court’s intervention in the state’s affairs. One of them described the High Court’s stay on the governor’s order to advance assembly session as a “much-needed succour to the incumbent Congress government in Arunachal Pradesh led by beleaguered chief minister Nabam Tuki who is in the eye of a political storm because of rebellion within the CLP [Congress Legislature Party].”
The paper also carried a column on its edit page about the logjam in the Parliament due to continued protests by the Congress party over various issues including the happenings in Arunachal Pradesh and took the party to task:
Another op-ed in the Arunachal Times took a more measured view and said that the logjam should end and all parties should seek fresh mandate by calling elections in the state.
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Apart from moving forward the assembly’s Winter Session from January 14 to December 16, he ordered that a resolution seeking the removal of Speaker Nabam Rebia “shall be the first item on the agenda of the House” and that the Deputy Speaker “shall preside over the House from the first moment of (its) first sitting”.
While the Congress, the ruling party in the State, alleged involvement of the Centre behind the Governor’s move, and blamed the Bharatiya Janata of trying to topple Chief Minister Nabam Tuki’s government, the BJP has shrugged its hands of the goings-on in the state and blamed the crisis on the internal faction-fighting in the Congress.
The trouble started brewing when Congress members of the Legislative Assembly started tendering their resignations as ministers were dropped, leading to suspension of some MLAs.
Some of the MLAs moved a notice for the removal of the Deputy Speaker, who is also a Congress MLA, accusing him of anti-party activities. This was followed by some BJP members giving a notice for the removal of the Speaker.
The state was set for a show of strength on January 14 when the Assembly would have reconvened for the Winter Session, but that is when the Governor moved in, precipitating matters.
Trading charges
As expected, Wednesday witnessed high drama when the Assembly was convened as per the Governor's directive. Supporters of Chief Minister Nabam Tuki blocked entry to the Assembly.
Denied entry, his opponents, including BJP MLAs and independents, Congress dissidents, including Deputy Speaker TN Thongdok, “impeached” the Speaker at a meeting elsewhere.
The upheaval in the state also managed to cast a shadow over the national politics too as the Congress disrupted Parliament on Wednesday, accusing Union Minister Kiren Rijiju of conspiring with Rajkhowa in “destabilising the state”.
“It is very unfortunate that unconstitutional attempts are being made to throw out the government,” Leader of Opposition in the Parliament and Congress MP Mallikarjun Kharge said in Lok Sabha. "Efforts are being to destabilise an elected government to bring in a non-Congress government.”
Even BJP’s Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu concurred that it was an “emergency-like situation” in the state but added that it would not be appropriate to discuss the Governor’s conduct in Parliament.
How the North East press sees it
The Arunachal Front’s website has carried multiple stories on the developments including the “bizarre turn of events” on Thursday when rebel Congress MLAs united with their BJP counterparts in a “local hotel” to oust Chief Minister Tuki and elect a rebel as the chief minister instead.
The Guwahati High Court, meanwhile, suspended the Governor’s directive and stayed all proceedings of the “rebel session” and posted the case to another hearing on February 1.
The Shillong Times carried two stories on the same page on Friday, reporting on the High Court’s intervention in the state’s affairs. One of them described the High Court’s stay on the governor’s order to advance assembly session as a “much-needed succour to the incumbent Congress government in Arunachal Pradesh led by beleaguered chief minister Nabam Tuki who is in the eye of a political storm because of rebellion within the CLP [Congress Legislature Party].”
The paper also carried a column on its edit page about the logjam in the Parliament due to continued protests by the Congress party over various issues including the happenings in Arunachal Pradesh and took the party to task:
“It is not uncommon for MLAs in that state to switch political sides at the drop of a hat. In 1996, 54 MLAs walked out of the Congress led by Gegong Apang, who ruled Arunachal Pradesh like his fiefdom. When a political party that has played all the dirty tricks in the world acts like an injured party and takes its battles to the President, we as citizens should take the drama with a pinch of salt.”
Another op-ed in the Arunachal Times took a more measured view and said that the logjam should end and all parties should seek fresh mandate by calling elections in the state.
“It’s a shame that political parties be it Congress, BJP and dissident MLAs are using goons in their political fight. The present scenario clearly tells that all the MLAs have lost trust of the people. They are resorting to all sort of unconstitutional activities and truly speaking MLAs have lost respect of the people of Arunachal. Political parties should go back to people and seek fresh mandate. Whoever wins the election should form the next government.”
The Nagaland Post in its editorial on Friday titled “Drama in Arunachal Pradesh” put the onus of the instability in the state on both the Congress and the BJP and took the Governor to task.
“The number of dissidents [in Congress] has risen, with a little bit of help from the BJP and then came the controversial role played by the state Governor in the entire machination. Politicians will adopt any means but if the Governor becomes partisan, then it is indeed unfortunate for constitutional democracy.”
Assam’s Sentinel too carried an editorial, titled "Mess in Arunachal needs swift cleanup" on Friday, which denounced the political mud-slinging going on currently in the state and called the crisis “unprecedented” and “bizarre”.
“Such developments bear ominous portents to the way the country’s democratic and federal polity is being perceived in this frontier state. The latest events prove once again how partisan politics can result in diametrically opposite readings of constitutional provisions and the law... National parties in Delhi need to consider the bad precedent created in Jammu Kashmir in 1984, when the Congress government at the Centre toppled Farooq Abdullah’s National Conference government by allying with GM Shah’s dissident faction. That was the point when Kashmiris began hating Delhi durbar politics. The mistake must not be repeated in Arunachal Pradesh which China has long been trying to bring under its shadow."
