New Haryana CM wins floor test by voice vote

CHANDIGARH: A day after assuming charge, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Wednesday won the floor test in the House during a special special session of the Assembly.

The confidence motion was passed with a voice vote.

Defying the whip, three out of the MLAs of the breakaway faction Jananayak Janta Party (JJP) -- Devinder Babli, Ishwar Singh, and Ram Kumar Gautam -- came to the Assembly, but left the House when the trust vote motion was taken up.

Meanwhile, the leader of the opposition, Bhupinder Hooda, and Congress MLA, B.B. Batra, said the House was convened at a short notice.

Another Congress MLA, Raghuvir Kadian, claimed that there is instability in the state, which calls for the imposition of President’s Rule. He also sought a secret ballot for the trust vote, claiming that five MLAs of the BJP would vote against the motion.

First-time BJP MP Saini was sworn-in as the Chief Minister on Tuesday, along with five Cabinet colleagues.

Saini’s name was unanimously decided during the party’s meeting after incumbent CM Manohar Lal Khattar and the entire Cabinet, comprising three members from Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala’s JJP, stepped down on Tuesday morning.

With a stronghold over the OBC community that makes up for 8 per cent of the population in the state, Saini will be the Chief Minister for seven months till the state goes to the polls.

The Saini caste has a sizeable population in Kurukshetra, Yamunanagar, Ambala, Hisar, and Rewari districts.

Kanwar Pal Gujjar, Mool Chand Sharma, Ranjit Singh Chautala, J.P. Dalal, and Banwarilal took oath as ministers along with Saini.

In the 90-member Assembly, the BJP has 41 MLAs, while the JJP has 10. The ruling combine also enjoys the support of six of the seven Independents, taking its tally past the halfway-mark of 45 seats.