Former Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Kalikho Pul allegedly committed suicide on Tuesday, less than a month after the Supreme Court unseated him and reinstated his rival Nabam Tuki.
Mr. Pul’s body was found hanging from a ceiling fan in a bedroom of the Chief Minister’s official bungalow, which he had not vacated.
There were reports of a suicide note being found but the police refused to confirm this. State police chief S. Nithyanandam only said that all documents had been seized from the room where the incident occurred.
As news of his death spread across Itanagar, hundreds of Mr. Pul’s supporters gathered outside his residence and staged a protest, blaming Congress legislators for their “betrayal” of the former chief minister.
While some demanded Chief Minister Pema Khandu’s resignation, others set fire to a coffin that was brought for Mr. Pul’s body, claiming it was “not worthy of a popular CM like Pul.”
The mob also vandalised the official residences of Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein and Industries Minister Tapang Taloh which are adjacent to the the Chief Minister’s bungalow.
The situation was brought under control by the afternoon. Mr Pul’s body is expected to be flown to his district, Anjaw, on Wednesday.
A senior Congress leader in New Delhi said Mr Pul had became a “victim of the BJP’s vicious politics” after his rebellion in December 2015. “He was an honest, hard-working politician. He got entangled in the BJP’s twisted agenda,” he said.
Khandu appeals for calm as protesters go on the rampage
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Tuesday appealed to the people to maintain peace following the suicide of former chief minister Kalikho Pul.
“We must remain calm and pray for his soul during such a time,” Mr. Khandu said, adding that a magisterial probe had been ordered into the incident.
Denying allegations that Mr Pul had been served a notice to vacate the bungalow by Tuesday, Mr. Khandu said he had told Mr. Pul that he could stay in the bungalow “for as long as he wished.”
Protesters who gathered in front of the official residence of the Chief Minister after news of Mr. Pul’s death, shouted slogans against Mr Khandu and demanded his resignation.
The mob also vandalised the official residences of Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein and Industries Minister Tapang Taloh which are adjacent to the the Chief Minister’s bungalow.
The situation was brought under control by the afternoon. Mr. Pul’s body is expected to be flown to his home district, Anjaw, on Wednesday.Speaking to The Hindu , Mr. Mein said the post mortem report would be ready by Wednesday.
‘Victim of politics’
“We have lost a veteran leader, a former Chief Minister. Therefore, all the steps will be taken to find out the real cause of his death,” Mr. Mein said. A senior Congress leader in New Delhi said Mr. Pul became a “victim of the BJP’s vicious politics” after he rebelled against the party in December 2015.
“He was an honest and hard working politician. He got entangled in the BJP’s twisted agenda,” the leader said.
In 2015, Mr. Pul led a year-long rebellion against Mr. Tuki but his efforts came to naught as the Congress leadership refused to remove Mr. Tuki.
The political instability culminated in the imposition of President’s rule on January 26, 2016.
In February, Mr Pul and other Congress rebels formed the government with outside support from the BJP. But in a dramatic turn of events, the Supreme Court on July 13 restored Mr Tuki as the Chief Minister.
Days later, the Congress leadership, in a bid to assuage the party rebels, asked Mr. Tuki to step down, paving the way for Mr. Khandu to become the Chief Minister and the return of Mr Pul and his rebels to the party.
(The writer is an Itanagar-based journalist)
The Hindu Internet Desk adds:
Rise and fall of Kalkho Pul
Mr. Pul, who took over the reigns of the state on February 19 this year, served as Chief Minister for a brief time with the Supreme Court in July reinstating Nabam Tuki, who then made way for Pema Khandu as the tenth Chief Minister of the State.
Mr. Pul had led a group of dissident MLAs from Congress against the then Chief Minister Nabam Tuki early this year.
A few hours after > President’s Rule was revoked in Arunachal Pradesh on February 19, the dissident Congress leader, was sworn in as Chief Minister.
However, the State's Congress leaders moved the apex court against the manner in which the President's rule was withdrawn without the apex court's knowledge and the formation of the Pul government in the next three hours on February 19.
But the apex court refused to intervene in the formation of the new government under dissident Congress leader Kalikho Pul, saying the highest judiciary has anyway the power and strength to put the clock back in the sensitive border State. > Read more
On July 13, a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court unanimously quashed Arunachal Pradesh Governor J.P. Rajkhowa's decision to advance the Assembly session from January 14, 2016 to December 16, 2015, a move which triggered political unrest in the sensitive border State and culminated in the declaration of President's rule on January 26.
The order effectively restored Tuki govt. to power. > Read more
