Haryana BJP govt turmoil: ‘No time bar on seeking trust vote in the legislature’
Legal and parliamentary affairs experts said that there was no time bar for seeking a repeat no-confidence motion against the government.
The vote of confidence won by the Nayab Singh Saini government in Haryana on March 13 would not prove to be a legal impediment if the Opposition persuades the governor to summon the House for a floor test again before a period of six months.
Legal and parliamentary affairs experts said that there was no time bar for seeking a repeat no-confidence motion against the government.
As per the Constitution, the intervening period between holding two sessions of the state assembly should be less than six months. The last sitting of the state assembly was on March 13.
Former additional secretary of Haryana assembly, Ram Narain Yadav said the six-month stipulation however does not apply if a motion of no confidence motion is sought by the opposition. “There have been many instances when multiple no-confidence motions have been brought in the legislatures well before the expiry of six months of the motion being first moved,” Yadav said.
Several examples of no-confidence motion being moved before six months
As per a Lok Sabha Secretariat publication, Cabinet Responsibility to Legislature, there have been several instances when repeat motions of no confidence were brought by the Opposition MPs in the Lok Sabha well before six months of the first such motion being moved in the lower House.
CPI (M) MP from West Bengal, Jyotirmoy Bosu moved a no-confidence motion against the Indira Gandhi-led central government on May 9, 1974, in the fifth Lok Sabha. The main ground for moving the motion was the railway strike. The motion was defeated on May 10, 1974.
In less than three months, Bosu again moved a motion of no confidence against Indira Gandhi government on July 23, 1974, stating that ordinances that had been promulgated introducing compulsory deposit scheme for income taxpayers and putting restrictions on dividends were wholly unjustified. The motion was defeated on July 25, 1974.
In the seventh Lok Sabha, a motion of no confidence was moved by George Fernandez on May 8, 1981, which was defeated on May 9, 1981. Another no-confidence motion was moved about four months later by Samar Mukherjee on September 17, 1981. The motion when put to vote was defeated.
In the 10th Lok Sabha, a no-confidence motion was moved against PV Narasimha Rao government on July 17, 1992, by Jaswant Singh. Another no-confidence motion was moved five months later by Atal Behari Vajpayee on December 21, 1992, against the same government.
Haryana assembly speaker, Gian Chand Gupta said that the governor will use his wisdom to decide whether a no-confidence motion can be brought in the House. “Usually, it is seen that once a government wins a vote of confidence, a no-confidence motion is not brought within six months. However, the decision rests with the governor,’’ said the speaker.
Punjab and Haryana high court lawyer, Keshavam Chaudhri said that there is no specific rule mandating a six-month waiting period between two no-confidence motions. “If the MLAs backing a government withdraw their support, the minority government cannot be granted six months based solely on a timing gap,’’ he said.
Experts said that the Haryana Governor can use his discretionary powers under Article 163 (1) and ask the government to prove its majority if he is convinced that the government has lost its majority in the House.