SHIMLA, March 12: Himachal Pradesh Govvernor V S Rama Devi tonight said she had submitted report to President K R Narayanan on the political developments in the state.Talking to newsmen at Raj Bhavan, she said it now depended on the president to act as neither the Congress nor the Bharatiya Janata Party enjoyed majority support.
She evaded a direct reply when asked if she had recommended in her report imposition of Presidents rule in the state.
Answering another questionthe governor said she had accepted resignations of both the Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and the Pro em Speaker Thakur Ram Lal from their posts.
Earlier in the day, Virbhadra resigned without facing the crucial trial of strength in the state Assembly and the BJP staked its claim to form the government.
The special session of the Assembly had been convened by the governor, who had given Virbhadra Singh ten days' time to prove his majority.
However, soon after the newly-elected MLAs were administered oath by the pro tem Speaker,Virbhadra announced his decision to resign since his party had failed to muster the requisite support.
He said that neither the Congress nor the BJP had the majority, and as he did not believe in horse-trading, he was offering to quit, to uphold the high traditions of democracy. Thereafter, he went to the Raj Bhavan and submitted his resignation, and the House was adjourned sine die.
With Ram Lal Thakur also announcing his resignation, both the Congress and the BJP-HVC combine were left with the support of 32 members each.
However, BJP Legislature Party leader Prem Kumar Dhumal, along with former chief minister Shanta Kumar and former Union Communications minister Sukh Ram, who is also leader of the HVC legislature group, met the Governor and staked claim to form the government.
The BJP leaders said that they had asked the Governor to invite Dhumal to form the government and that the party would prove its strength on the floor of the House after ten days.
Shanta Kumar, who also held a meeting withIndependent MLA Ramesh Chaudhry (inducted in the Virbhadra ministry), assured the Governor that the party would be able to obtain his support if allowed to form the government. However, Chaudhry is understood to have informed the BJP leaders that he would take the final decision only after a couple of days. The resignation of the Chief Minister and pro tem Speaker came as a surprise for the saffron-HVC combine, which had come fully prepared for the trial of strength.
Virbhadra Singh did not move the motion for trust vote as expected and instead announced his resignation, which was welcomed by the ruling party members with the thumping of desks. The Opposition also cheered and displayed ``victory'' signs. Subsequently, the House was adjourned and the day's business was not taken up despite Prem Kumar Dhumal's suggestions that obituary references be taken up.
At the Raj Bhavan, Congress paraded 32 members. ``We did not suggest anything to the Governor and left the final decision to her,'' a former ministerAsha Kumari told The Indian Express. Though the mood in the BJP circles remained upbeat, the Congress expected the state to be put under President's rule.
Meanwhile, Dhumal and Sukh Ram described Virbhadra's claim of resigning to ``uphold the democratic traditions'' as ``ridiculous'', and said that if he indeed respected the democratic traditions, he should not have formed the government when invited by the Governor to do so.
After the return of hung Assembly, the Governor had taken two days to ascertain the claims of the Congress and the BJP-HVC. She had insisted on the midnight parading of the HVC, whom Virbhadra claimed to be on his side.
The two MLAs had clearly told the Governor that they were in the HVC and supported the BJP. As Independent MLA Ramesh Chaudhry had remained neutral, no group could secure the majority and the Governor had decided to invite Virbhadra.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
