In a sudden turn of events, UP chief minister Mayawati has got her Cabinet to approve dissolution of the state Assembly even before counting of votes begins.
The proposal was signed by Cabinet ministers by circulation and not a single official was ready to confirm the same. One of the ministers, however, spilled the beans when he told a select group of journalists that he had been called to the chief minister’s residence onSunday night to sign the document.
The Cabinet’s approval to the dissolution of the state Assembly comes a day after all exit polls showed the BSP being voted out of power.
As per tradition, the resolution to dissolve the Assembly is passed after declaration of election results and is handed over to the governor along with the resignation of the Cabinet and chief minister to make way for Constitution of new Assembly.
The Assembly stands dissolved only after approval and notification of the governor. But Ms Mayawati got the resolution approved two days before the counting of votes. Sources in Raj Bhavan said that no such resolution had yet been received from the chief minister.
Meanwhile, political analysts are questioning the political motive behind the hasty decision to get the dissolution of the Assembly passed by the Cabinet.
However, a senior officer close to the chief minister explained that the resolution had been approved in view of the fact that majority of the BSP ministers would be in their constituencies when the counting of votes begins and travelling back to Lucknow may not be easy since Holi comes immediately after the counting.
Meanwhile, UP governor B.L. Joshi has been studying and compiling all the past instances of hung Assembly in the state and the options before the governor. He has consulted his legal advisors and wants to ensure that no questions are raised on his decision, if and when he takes it.
A senior official at Raj Bhavan said that though previous cases o hung assemblies were being studied, the governor’s role would come into play only after March 9 when the Election Commission formally informs him of the election results and denotifies the election process.