'No confidence' motion 'adopted' against Nabam Tuki government

ITANAGAR: In a bizarre turn of events, Opposition BJP and rebel Congress MLAs today got together in a local hotel to "vote out" the Nabam Tuki-led Congress government in Arunachal Pradesh and to "elect" a rebel Congress MLA as the new "chief minister".

The dramatic development came a day after they "impeached" Speaker Nabam Rebia in a make-shift "Assembly" premises in a community hall.

Eleven BJP MLAs and two Independent MLAs joined hands with 20 Congress rebels to meet at a conference hall of a hotel here as the Assembly premises have been sealed since yesterday.

Today, a "no confidence" motion moved by BJP MLAs and Independent MLAs was "adopted" with Deputy Speaker T Norbu Thongdok, who is also a rebel Congressman, in the Chair.

A total 33 members of the 60-member house, including 20 dissident Congress MLAs, later "elected" another dissident Congressman Kalikho Pul as the new "chief minister" of the state.

The Chief Minister Nabam Tuki and his 26 supporting MLAs boycotted the proceedings terming them as "illegal and unconstitutional".

The Chief Minister later wrote to President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking their intervention to "uphold" the Constitution in the face of the "unprecedented murder" of democracy and "bypassing" of a democratically-elected government by Governor Jyoti Prashad Rajkhowa.

Angry over the Governor's action in calling a session of the Assembly bypassing the government the Congress has paralysed the Rajya Sabha for the last two days.