Himachal political crisis far from over as only 25 of 40 Congress MLAs attend breakfast meeting convened by CM Sukhu at his residence
TNR Desk
The crisis within the Congress government in Himachal Pradesh shows no signs of abating with only 25 out of the total 40 party MLAs attending the breakfast meeting convened by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu at his official residence, Oak Over, in Shimla on Thursday morning (February 29, 2024).
All MLAs were instructed to be present at Oak Over by 9.30 am, yet only 25 MLAs reportedly arrived at the Chief Minister’s residence. Shimla-rural MLA Vikramaditya Singh, who tendered his resignation from the post of PWD Minister on Wednesday, was absent from the meeting. Additionally, two MLAs known to be loyal to Vikramaditya —Mohan Lal Brakta from Rohru and Nand Lal from Rampur — were also conspicuously absent.
Approximately 10 hours following his resignation, Vikramaditya had stated that he would refrain from pressing for the acceptance of his resignation at the moment. This declaration followed Vikramaditya’s meetings with former Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, both sent as observers to Shimla by the Congress high command to address the crisis in Himachal government.
Speculation abounds that the high command may afford Sukhu time until the Lok Sabha elections and might not currently be inclined towards a change in leadership. The two appointed observers have engaged with all Congress MLAs and are expected to submit their report to the high command on Thursday. Any decision regarding a potential change in the Chief Minister’s position is contingent upon the findings of this report.
