Nabam Tuki government to stay for now in Arunachal Pradesh

NEW DELHI: The Congress government led by Nabam Tuki in Arunachal Pradesh will stay for now, till the Supreme Court decides all issues involving an attempt by the opposition BJP and some rebel Congress legislators to overthrow the government there.

"Who is governing Arunachal?" the court asked. "If there is a law and order problem who deals with it?" Lawyers for the ousted Speaker Nabam Rebia told the court that Tuki continued to be the Chief Minister and he would.

The bench was also told that no consequences would follow if no house session is convened beyond six months.

However, the ousted speaker of the Tuki government sharply resisted a court suggestion to have a house session to have a floor test with a new pro tem Speaker and decide the new leader while it decided the issue of disqualification of rebel Congress MLAs which has sparked off the constitutional crisis there.

His lawyers pre-empted any attempt to impose presidents rule in the state telling the court that they do not want a floor test till the issue of disqualification was settled.

"This is not a situation in which article 356 (President's rule) can be imposed," the ousted speakers counsel Fali Nariman said drawing protests from the lawyer of the Deputy Speaker.