Nayab Singh Saini wins trust vote in Haryana Assembly, praises Manohar Lal Khattar’s work

Geetanjali Gayatri

Chandigarh, March 13

The Nayab Singh Saini-led BJP government in Haryana won the trust vote by a voice vote during a special session of the Vidhan Sabha here today. Saini had taken oath as the Chief Minister yesterday.

Making his maiden speech as CM in the Vidhan Sabha, Saini was all praise for former Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, saying that he had learnt a lot from him.

“The state has seen all-round development under Khattar. We commit ourselves to serving the public with newer programmes while following in the footsteps of Khattar,” he said, adding that the public had complete faith in the BJP government.

Referring to Khattar as a “fakir” with a “clean image”, Saini said he worked in a mission mode to bring about systematic changes that helped weed out corruption and improved the life of the common man. “He has given an honest government and done substantial work (imandar sarkar aur damdar kaam) and the public wants the Narendra Modi government back,” Saini said, appreciating the schemes of the government, including Ayushman card, MSP for 14 crops and the Parivar Pehchan Patra among others. Speaking about his humble beginnings as the son of a farmer, Saini said he had risen through the ranks to reach this position, which was only possible in the BJP.

Though Saini won the trust vote, the day clearly belonged to former CM Khattar with the treasury benches showering accolades on him for his good governance and public outreach initiatives.

The Opposition, however, highlighted instances of “misrule” and “scams” in the nine-and-a-half-year Khattar tenure though Congress MLA Raghuvir Singh Kadian did given him a “certificate” of remaining untouched in a system that reeked of corruption.

Five Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) MLAs — Ram Kumar Gautam, Devender Babli, Ishwar Singh, Ramniwas Surjakhera and Jogi Ram Sihag — left the House when the trust vote was taken up after the JJP issued a whip asking its 10 legislators to remain absent from the Assembly during voting on the confidence motion. The other five MLAs, including Dushyant Chautala, remained absent from the House. The lone INLD MLA, Abhay Singh Chautala, was conspicuous by his absence while Leader of the Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda said the BJP-JJP alliance was not the outcome of some ideology or public welfare but only to grab power.

Stating that it was always a “minority government”, Hooda said the state had become number one in “scams and unemployment”.

“Nothing has come out of the common minimum programme and the chairman of the committee, Anil Vij, is no longer a minister. This is the first time a whip has been issued to ensure the absence of the JJP MLAs, which shows the BJP and the JJP are still together. They should have come and voted against the government,” he said, demanding President’s rule in the state and urging the Chief Minister to dissolve the House and go to the polls. Hooda referred to CM Saini as a “night watchman”.

Kadian, the first to speak on the resolution of confidence moved by the CM, sought voting by secret ballot while maintaining that five BJP MLAs would vote against the motion.

Taking a dig at Khattar, he said, “It is strange that the PM praised Khattar’s work and decided to change him the very next day. The BJP should realise that anti-incumbency cannot be minimised by changing one individual. We have sympathy for Khattar.”

The Congress MLAs accused the government of horse-trading while highlighting the “plight of farmers, growing unemployment, collapsing law and order situation and scams” under the BJP rule.

Minister Kanwar Pal Gujjar underlined the public-centric initiatives of the government while minister JP Dalal asked the Congress to keep its flock together instead of focusing on the changes in the BJP.