Congress-DMK Govt Falls in Puducherry, Narayanasamy Resigns as CM

The Congress in Puducherry had been hit by a spate of resignations in the last one month. 

(Photo: Aroop Mishra/The Quint)

Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy submitted his resignation to Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan on Monday, 22 February, minutes after his government fell in the Union territory.

The people of Puducherry will give the Opposition a befitting reply in the upcoming elections, Narayanasamy said.

Earlier on Monday, the Assembly Speaker announced that the Congress-DMK government lost its majority, as the alliance members staged a walkout. The developments come just months before elections are scheduled to be held in the union territory.

Former Puducherry Chief Minister and Opposition party leader N Rangaswamy told media persons he will consult with alliance partners on staking claim to form the next government in Puducherry.

‘Kiran Bedi Colluded With Opposition’: What CM Narayanasamy Said in Assembly

Addressing the Assembly during the special session ahead of the floor test ordered by the lieutenant governor, Narayanasamy had initially insisted that he has a majority, as he sought a confidence vote.

Accusing Kiran Bedi, who was removed as the Union territory's lieutenant governor last week, of colluding with the Opposition and trying to topple the government, the Congress leader said, "Because of the support of my MLAs, we were able to complete almost five years of our government."

“We formed the government with the support of DMK and independent MLAs. After that, we faced various elections. We have won all the by-elections. It is clear that people of Puducherry trust us.”

Puducherry CM V Narayanasamy

The chief minister further demanded full statehood to "stop the L-G from taking away the rights of the people."

When the Congress-DMK alliance lost majority in the House, its members staged a walkout.

“Today, the failure of Narayanasamy government has been proven. Even today, he spoke ill about the government at the Centre but didn’t have answers to our questions on what he has done for the people of Puducherry. He has not fulfilled the promises he had made to the people when he was elected to power,” said Opposition leader Rangasamy.

Spate of Resignations

The Congress in Puducherry had been hit by a spate of resignations in the last one month.

On Sunday, party MLA K Lakshminarayanan and DMK MLA K Venkatesan handed over their resignation letters to Puducherry Assembly Speaker VP Sivakozhundu.

After this development, the V Narayanasamy-led government was reduced to 12 MLAs. The Opposition’s strength stood at 14 in the 33-member House.

The Opposition in Puducherry, led by N Rangasamy, had demanded the resignation of Chief Minister V Narayanasamy. They had claimed that the recent Congress MLAs who resigned from their posts had done so as they were dissatisfied with the government.

Assembly elections for the Union territory are scheduled to be held by May this year.

Last week, Kiran Bedi was also removed as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, with the additional charge of the UT given to Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan