Assembly must be summoned before Feb 12 to avert PR : Joy ‘Stake claim for Govt formation’

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Feb 10 : Veteran politician O Joy has said that Manipur is on the brink of President's Rule (PR) if certain conditions aren't met.
Speaking to The Sangai Express at his residence at Kakwa today, Joy elaborated that either the Assembly must be summoned with a new Chief Minister, or the Assembly must be put under animated suspension before February 12 noon to prevent Manipur from coming under PR.
He continued that the sixth session of 12th Manipur Assembly Legislative was adjourned on August 12, 2024.
A State legislature has to be summoned at least once every six month as per Article 174 of the Constitution, Joy said and added that the  seventh session of the State Assembly must commence before February 12 noon to comply with this Constitutional requirement.
Putting the State Assembly under animated suspension is another option to keep the House technically "alive", he said.
To avoid PR or animated suspension in Manipur, the ruling MLAs must take swift action and stake claim to form a new Government with a new Chief Minister, and summon the House before February 12 noon, Joy added.
The Governor won't invite the MLAs to form a Government, he reasoned.
He went on to state that the seventh session of the State Assembly is very crucial as the Government needs to table the Budget and Supplementary Budget for 2025-2026.
The Government needs to move a vote of confidence and prove its majority in the House given the internal conflict among the ruling MLAs and as NPP and KPA MLAs  have withdrawn their support to the Government , Joy said.
N Biren Singh's resignation as the Chief Minister may be linked to his inability to prove his majority in the House session that was scheduled to start today, Joy said.
The House session needs to be summoned so that the legislators can take a collective resolution to protect the village volunteers safeguarding Meetei villages and the integrity of Manipur, Joy said and added that a resolution of the House is also crucial to resolve the crisis besetting Manipur.
The State Assembly's fate hangs in the balance, and continuing with N Biren Singh as the caretaker Chief Minister could lead to its demise, he warned and added that there is still time to summon the House till February 12.
Is the Centre planning to impose PR in Manipur, he wondered and added that either suspended animation or PR will come  in Manipur if the ruling MLAs fail to stake claim to form the Government.
People won't want imposition of PR in Manipur, Joy said and advised the ruling MLAs to set aside the differences and take immediate steps to form a Government.
There , however, is no sign of the Centre and the dissident MLAs working together to form a new Govt following Biren Singh's resignation, Joy said and added that the current political landscape in Manipur is precarious, and the possibility of PR being imposed cannot be ruled out.
He further said that setting aside all the differences and forming a new Government would be the right step to address the crisis in Manipur.