PANAJI: The Manohar Parrikar government today proved its majority on the floor of the Goa Assembly by winning the trust vote with the support of 22 legislators in the 40-member House.
The opposition Congress could muster only 16 votes against the government with one of its legislators absenting from the crucial floor test.
The special Assembly session was convened to conduct the floor test following an order by the Supreme Court.
Parrikar, who resigned as Defense minister earlier this week, was sworn-in as the Chief Minister along with nine other MLAs by Governor Mridula Sinha on March 14.
The 61-year-old BJP leader proved his majority with 12 legislators from the BJP, three from the Goa Forward Party (GFP), three from the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), three Independents and one from the NCP voting in favor of the trust motion.
The opposition benches included 16 MLAs from Congress, while its newly-elected member Vishwajit Rane remained absent during the voting.
The test was passed through a clear division which was ordered by Pro-tem Speaker Siddharth Kuncolienkar, a BJP member.
Senior Congress leader Pratapsinh Rane sought to raise a point of order when Parrikar moved a motion seeking vote of confidence.
The Speaker, however, did not allow Rane to raise the point of order and continued the voting process.
The Congress, despite emerging as the single largest party in the elections, could not form the government while the BJP made deft moves by securing support from regional outfits and independents.
Riding on the charisma of Parrikar, the BJP managed to cobble up an alliance of GFP, MGP and Independents.
An aggrieved Congress moved the Supreme Court on March 13 to stall the swearing-in of Parrikar with the claim that it should have been invited to form the government since it was the single largest party.
But the apex court refused to stop the swearing-in and ordered to hold the floor test today.
Ahead of the trust vote, all the 40 legislators took oath.
Later, the session was adjourned till March 22 when it will meet again to elect the Speaker. This would be followed by the Governors address on March 23 and presentation of the state budget on March 24.
BJP’s poster boy
For Manohar Parrikar, who proved himself to be BJP’s best bet in Goa by sewing up a coalition and proving its majority on the floor of Assembly, it is a homecoming and another stint as chief minister of the coastal state.
Despite failing to secure a simple majority in the polls, the BJP managed to win the support of two regional parties besides the backing of two Independents, outsmarting the Congress which emerged as the single largest party with 17 seats in the 40-member house.
Right from the start of campaigning, the BJP had sent across a subtle message that if it wins, the government would be headed by Parrikar.
Parrikar led the BJP’s campaign from the front.
A metallurgical engineer from IIT Bombay, Parrikar, post-election, displayed splendid political acumen and skill in forging a coalition winning over the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) and Goa Forward Party (GFP).
Born in a middle class business family in Mapusa in north Goa, Manohar Gopalkrishna Prabhu Parrikar graduated to the BJP from the RSS ranks.
He joined the RSS in his school days and always held that the ideology and training he received from the organization stood him in good stead in public life, most importantly in decision-making.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who hand-picked him as the Defense Minister in November 2014, has often lavished praises on Parrikar for his dedication and hard work, especially in the context of the surgical strike last year.
Parrikar was first elected to the Goa Assembly in 1994. He served as the leader of the opposition from June to November 1999. –PTI
Thank You For Your Vote!
Sorry You have Already Voted!
