The Congress, with superior numbers, burst with self-righteous rage as a BJP government led by Manohar Parrikar was sworn in in Goa, and as Manipur Governor Najma Heptullah invited the saffron party to form the government in the north-eastern State on Wednesday.
The decks for Manohar Parrikar to take oath as Goa Chief Minister were cleared by the Supreme Court, which refused the plea of the Congress to stay the ceremony and maintained that the BJP had shown the support of 21 out of the 40 newly-elected MLAs. The apex court, at the same time, directed that a floor test be conducted on Thursday.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice JS Khehar refused to interfere with the decision of Governor Mridula Sinha and took on record her letter to Parrikar, which factored in the support of the regional parties — Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party and Goa Forward Party (GFP) — and independents, taking the tally to 21 to attain the half-way mark in the 40-member House.
The BJP, which had won 21 seats, seven less than the Congress, made a bid for power claiming that it has the support of 33 MLAs in the 60-member assembly. The National People’s Party (NPP) and Naga People’s Front (NPF), each with four seats, offered support to the BJP. The Lok Janshakti Party, already an ally of the BJP at the Centre, also has one MLA in the State.
The Congress, in the meantime, accused the BJP of “stealing” the mandate of the people. Emerging from the shadow of his party’s decimation in Uttar Pradesh, Congress VP Rahul Gandhi alleged that the Goa Governor had acted in a “partisan” manner.
“They are saying that it is okay for them to misuse the office of the Governor...In the two States where we won, democracy has been undermined by them (BJP) using financial power, money. That is what is happening. The mandate of the people of Goa and Manipur has been stolen by the BJP,” he told newspersons outside Parliament.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley lashed out at the Congress for “complaining too much” about the BJP’s manoeuvres in Goa when it had clearly managed to forge an alliance to reach the majority mark of 21 MLAs in the State Assembly.
Citing several precedents and a past communiqué by ex-President KR Narayanan, the Finance Minister justified the decision of the governor to invite Manohar Parrikar to form the government. The BJP, he said, was able to cobble up the requisite strength to forge a majority while the Congress clearly failed to do so.
“The Congress Party complains a bit too much. It accused the BJP of ‘stealing’ the mandate in Goa. It unsuccessfully petitioned before the Supreme Court. It attempted to raise issues in the Lok Sabha,” said the Finance Minister in a Facebook post.