A former Congress MLA has warned that Uttarakhand is on the verge of a “constitutional crisis,” citing the fact that BJP Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat, who took office in March and must win an assembly seat by September 10, is unable to contest bypolls as required by law because the assembly elections are less than a year away. Uttarakhand will have elections early next year.
According to Nav Prabhat, who served as transport minister in the Harish Rawat administration, section 151A of the Representation of the People Act states that a bypoll cannot be called if the state polls are barely a year away.
“The state is heading towards a constitutional crisis. CM Tirath Singh Rawat’s six-month tenure ends on September 10, BJP will have no option but to name a new chief minister,” says Prabhat.
He said that in one instance in Punjab, the Supreme Court termed the reappointment of a minister – who was not elected within six months – as invalid and unconstitutional. Uttarakhand agriculture minister Subodh Uniyal, however, asserted that the Congress was trying to mislead people through half-baked information.
Two assembly seats are vacant: Gangotri and Haldwani. The seat of Gangotri became vacant on April 22 with the death of Gopal Rawat, while Indira Hridayesh, a Congress MLA from Haldwani, died earlier this month. Tirath Rawat is expected to run for Gangotri.
