Congress, NC oppose nomination of MLAs before government formation
National Conference (NC) provincial president Rattan Lal Gupta objected to the nomination of five MLAs to the J&K Legislative Assembly by the Lieutenant Governor (L-G), calling the move unconstitutional and undemocratic. Gupta asserted that the power to nominate MLAs lies with an elected government, not the L-G, particularly after elections.
In a statement, Gupta emphasised that legislative powers, including MLA nominations, should rest with the government once elections are held. “In a democratic system, the elected government must make such nominations. The L-G does not have the constitutional authority to do so in the presence of an elected government,” he said.
The 5 MLAs will have significant role in forming govt
- For the first time in J&K, five nominated MLAs will have a significant role in forming the new government following a decade-long hiatus
- The L-G will nominate these members based on the advice of the Home Ministry, according to reports
- This process follows an amendment to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which was further revised on July 26, 2023 to introduce these nominations
- In that case, the J&K Assembly will expand to 95 members, increasing the majority threshold to 48 seats to form a government
Gupta accused the BJP of unethical practices, including horse-trading and manipulating Independent candidates to subvert the electoral process. “Having lost the Assembly polls, BJP is resorting to desperate tactics to alter the political landscape in their favour,” he claimed. Gupta added that the people of J&K deserve a government formed through their votes, not through backdoor alliances.
The Congress also opposed the L-G’s move, with J&K Congress working president Raman Bhalla and party vice-president Ravinder Sharma terming it a “fraud with democracy”. Sharma stressed that under the constitutional scheme, the L-G must act on the advice of the council of ministers. Any such nominations before government formation, he said, would manipulate the Assembly’s composition and undermine democratic processes. Both NC and Congress expressed confidence in forming a majority government despite BJP’s maneuvers.
