Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh on Wednesday, February 28, refuted BJP leader’s claim that he has tendered his resignation. Stating that the government will complete the full five-year term, he said, “I haven’t offered any resignation. I am a warrior and will continue to fight.”
This comes after suspended BJP MP and opposition leader Jairam Thakur had floated rumours that he was informed that the CM had tendered his resignation inside the Assembly. “This government has lost all the moral rights to stay in power. As far as I have been informed, CM Sukhu has also presented his resignation inside the House. Maybe the high command has asked him, I am not sure,” he had said.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda have been appointed as Congress observers for the state and will decide the further course of action. They were asked to visit Shimla immediately to take stock of the situation. There are speculations that the party would hold a meeting later in the day to select a new leader.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, in a social media post, said that he was on his way to Himachal Pradesh as per the directions of the Congress High Command. “There is absolutely no need to indulge in any hearsay. I am confident that Congress Party legislators will be loyal to the party and stay put with the mandate that has been accorded to them. However, what should be questioned and worrisome is the extremes to which BJP is going in terms of acquiring power, deliberately attempting to crush democracy and public mandate in the process,” he added.
Addressing the media, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said party president Mallikarjun Kharge has told Shivakumar, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, and party in-charge Rajeev Shukla to meet the MLAs and present a report to the high command so as to tackle ‘Operation Lotus’.
Jairam Ramesh said, “Our priority now is to save the Congress government because we received a clear mandate in December 2022. The people of Himachal Pradesh had rejected PM Modi, JP Nadda, Anurag Thakur, and Jairam Thakur. The mandate should be respected. The Modi government has just one guarantee, which is to topple all Congress Governments. We will not let this happen."
Earlier in the day, Himachal Pradesh Minister Vikramaditya Singh had also announced his resignation from the Cabinet. Soon after the development, the Assembly Speaker suspended 15 BJP legislators including Leader of Opposition Jairam Thakur. Vikramaditya is the son of Congress stalwart and six-time chief minister Virbhadra Singh.