It Is Through ''Conspiracy'' By BJP And Its Allies That My Govt Was Toppled: Narayanasamy

Former Chief Minister of Puducherry V Narayanasamy on Wednesday cautioned the voters against supporting the alliance comprising BJP, AINRC and AIADMK in the coming assembly polls here as these parties would have no qualms to merge the Union Territory with Tamil Nadu.

Addressing party workers during a demonstration here to condemn the 'toppling' of the Congress-led government in Puducherry, Narayanasamy said, "my government was toppled through undemocratic and scrupulous designs and the conspiracy hatched by the BJP in coordination with the AINRC and AIADMK." He launched an emotional tirade against the BJP and its allies for "committing the murder of democracy" by adopting "unprincipled practices to lure turncoats" to topple the democratically elected government here.

"Even before my government was formed in June 2016 the Centre had posted the former IPS officer Kiran Bedi as Lt Governor of Puducherry in May that year. This was clear proof of the plan of the NDA to rock the boat and disturb democratically elected government." Narayanasamy, who led the Congress government, resigned on Monday ahead of the confidence vote after his ministry was reduced to a minority following a spate of resignations of his party MLAs and a DMK legislator in recent days.

He called on Lt Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, who had earlier directed a floor test to prove his majority, and submitted the resignation of his four-member cabinet. President Ram Nath Kovind has accepted the resignation. The Congress leader claimed that the BJP led alliance would bite the dust in the forthcoming polls and all the contestants of the saffron party and its alliance partners would lose the deposit. "If by any chance the alliance comprising BJP and its allies comes to power, the separate identity of Puducherry as a union territory would be dismantled and its merger with neighbouring Tamil Nadu would happen," he alleged.

Asserting that the SDA headed by Congress would get elected in the ensuing polls, Narayanasamy said, "we will form the next government to serve the people."

VCK leader Tirumavalan in his address said the BJP led government at the Centre had shown its political machinations by dislodging the Congress-led governments in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Karnataka and a few other States. "On the same line, the Narayanasamy led Congress DMK coalition ministry was ousted in Puducherry. The toppling of the government elected by the people of Puducherry was a shameless act on the part of the BJP," he said.

Tirumavalavan listed several unique and progressive measures the Narayanasamy headed government had implemented for housing facilities and educational advancement of the students belonging to SC and ST and Other Backward classes. He said the VCK would extend its cooperation to the secular democratic alliance here. He asked the people to ensure that those who had "fallen a prey to allurements and shifted their allegiance" were taught a lesson in the Assembly polls due in the next few months."