Morung Express News
Dimapur | July 13
The dissident camp of the Naga People’s Front (NPF) has attributed the Chief Minister’s refusal for floor test as proof of lacking the support of “the majority of the members of the 12th Nagaland Legislative Assembly.”
Dr. Shürhozelie Liezietsu is trying to “cling to the chair of the Chief Minister till the General Elections scheduled for 2018 and perhaps even beyond” by filing his nomination for the by-election to 10 Northern 1 A.C scheduled on July 29, it pointed out.
While claiming on many occasions that he accepted the chair only for a period of two to three months, Dr. Shürhozelie is contradicting himself by making his son “vacate his Assembly seat,” alleged a statement issued by MLA Tokheho Yepthomi, appended as the Spokesperson of the ‘NPF Legislature Party’
Not an internal matter
The Spokesperson dismissed the Chief Minister’s contention that the “present crisis is an internal matter of the NPF Party” and the Governor of Nagaland has “no business to interfere in the matters of the Party.”
“If that is the case then why and under what authority has he sacked 4 Cabinet Ministers and 10 Parliamentary Secretaries who have taken the oath of office under the Constitution of India…[and] dismissed the appointment of Independent MLAs as Parliamentary Secretaries who are definitely not members of the NPF Party,” he asserted.
This is very much a legally constituted Governmental activity and not the internal matter of a political Party, Tokheho added.
He further accused the Chief Minister of violating “the Model Code of Conduct in place,” by issuing several official notifications even to the “extent of allocating the office chambers at the State Civil Secretariat as well as the official residences of Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries to others.”
Tokheho wondered whether Dr. Shurhozelie and his Council of Ministers were “misguided by Nabam Rabia case” and said that it was different from the current issue.
“The Governor has not summoned the Assembly, but has advised that the Chief Minister should prove his majority in the house as TR Zeliang has claimed the support of the majority of the members and that he should fix a date on or before the July 15.” This is very much within the parameters of the duties and functions of a Governor of a State enshrined in the Constitution of India, the Spokesperson contended.
“Dr. Shurhozelie has absolutely no jurisdiction to advice nor dictate the Governor of the State in the discharge of his Constitutional duties and functions.”
A ‘popular’ government soon
Tokheho clarified that since a meeting of the NPF Legislature Party can be summoned only by the “Leader of the NPF Legislature Party and nobody else, not even the Chief Minister,” it was within the ambit of the Constitutional provision that TR Zeliang, the Leader of the NPF Legislature Party, had summoned a meeting on July 4 and others thereafter.
“Zeliang has never ceased to be the Leader of the NPF Legislature Party ever since he was elected in 2014 and even as recent as June 2017, 44 MLAs of the NPF had individually reaffirmed their support to his leadership,” he added.
The 44 MLAs include some of those with Dr. Shurhozelie namely P. Longon, Yitachu, Y. Vikheho Swu, C. L. John, Chotisuh Sazo, Thongwang Konyak, R. Tohanba and T. Torechu whose signatures were appended in support of TR Zeliang, he claimed.
MLAs supporting Zeliang and his leadership to form new DAN Government, have already submitted their individual resignation letters to the Chief Minister on July 9, he further informed.
The chief minister’s “power mongering” will cease, Tokheho said and added that a “popular Government” headed by Zeliang will be installed “very soon.”
