Himachal crisis: Will run government for five years, says CM Sukhu

Shimla, Feb 28 (PTI) Amid a political crisis in Himachal Pradesh after the defeat of the Congress candidate in the Rajya Sabha elections, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Wednesday asserted that they will run the government for five years.

“Neither the high command has asked me nor anyone else for resignation and there is no such thing,” Sukhu told PTI Videos while replying to a question.

He said, “The kind of work done by the state BJP leaders. They did not trust their own people. CRPF was deployed. Haryana police was deployed. A helicopter was used.”

In a stunning upset for the ruling Congress in Himachal Pradesh, the BJP on Tuesday won the state’s lone Rajya Sabha seat with its candidate Harsh Mahajan defeating Congress stalwart Abhishek Manu Singhvi and apparently setting the stage for a no-trust motion in the assembly.

“But I want to say one thing that the people of Himachal are with us and MLAs are with us and I can definitely say that we will run the Himachal government for five years,” said Sukhu.

Asked whether it was because of the “Operation Lotus” or “own people” that led to the current situation, the chief minister said, “Some mistakes may have been made and because of those mistakes, there may have been some deficiencies.”

But he also said, “The kind of ‘tantar-mantar’ used in the Operation Lotus that had bigger (role) in it.”

The voting on Tuesday was a tie with both the Congress and the BJP candidates getting 34 votes, indicating that at least six Congress MLAs voted against the party.

The result was then declared on the basis of a draw of lots, officials said.

In the 68-member Himachal Pradesh Assembly, the Congress has 40 MLAs while the BJP has 25 legislators. The remaining three seats are held by independents.