A day after the Guwahati High Court stayed the notification issued by Arunachal Pradesh Governor J.P. Rajkhowa for bringing the Assembly session forward and electing a new Chief Minister on makeshift premises, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju on Friday denied he was in any way involved in fuelling the crisis. He said the “use of unethical means and manipulation is not in my blood” and the crisis was the creation of the Congress.
Mr. Rijiju represents Arunachal Pradesh (West) in the Lok Sabha. Some Congress leaders have alleged that his “role could be more than official” in the context of the crisis. Since the Governor is appointed by the Home Ministry, the Congress has alleged that the BJP government at the Centre was fuelling the crisis with the help of Mr. Rijiju through the Governor.
> Read: Editorial- Unseemly turn in Arunachal Pradesh
“Subversion of the Constitution, the use of unethical means and manipulation is not in my blood. I don’t differentiate on party lines when it comes to constitutional duty,” Mr. Rijiju said.
Asked specifically about his role, he said: “I am not involved and I am not interested [in it]. The matter is in the High Court, and it would be inappropriate on my part to make any statement.
“We [the BJP] are in opposition in Arunachal Pradesh, and will continue to oppose the wrong position of the government.”
Congress seeks exit of Arunachal Governor
Lauding the decision of the Guwahati High Court that suspended all the controversial orders of Governor Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa until February 2016, the Congress on Friday sought the replacement of the Governor.
Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad, displayed the High Court judgement in a press conference to prove that Governor Rajkhowa had “undermined” Indian democracy by playing a “non-neutral role.”
“The judgment says that the Governor acts as a Constitutional head and, therefore, his decision to advance the Assembly session without advice of the Chief Minister taints the Governor’s order and renders it unworthy of the State’s Constitutional head,” said Mr.Azad.
