Arunachal Pradesh crisis: President's rule may be revoked, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi tells Supreme Court

NEW DELHI: Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that President’s Rule imposed on January 26, 2016, on Arunachal Pradesh may be revoked and a new government installed there, and successfully prevailed upon the top court not to enter into the "political thicket" by imposing a status quo order. "This suspension (Assembly) has to go. There has to be a government.

Where is the cloak of invincibility? Your lordship is getting into political thicket," the AG told the bench, comprising Justices JS Khehar, Dipak Misra, Madan B Lokur, Pinaki Chandra Ghose and NV Ramana.

The bench is debating the legality of the ousted Congress speaker’s decision to disqualify 14 rebels who joined hands with the Opposition BJP to topple the Nabam Tuki government in the state. This will determine their voting rights in an eventual floor test. Justice Khehar responded saying: "Shorn of all merits and political considerations let us go for a floor strength, whoever has the majority before he takes charge, let him prove it." He suggested that the court would direct a floor test to decide majority.

But ousted Speaker Nabam Rebia and CM Tuki, through counsels Fali S Nariman and Kapil Sibal, resisted this suggestion. "We are saying you can’t put a man (Kalikho Pul) who is ex facie disqualified." Pul, who was elected new leader of the House legislature party, was disqualified by the Speaker, but that order has since been stayed by the HC.