By IANS
Shimla : Irrespective of the results next week of the Himachal Pradesh assembly polls, the Congress government will continue until March 9 next year when its term expires, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh said Saturday.
“Let me make it clear to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that I have no intention of resigning after the results are out on Dec 28. Whatever the verdict is, we will continue to rule until March 9 next year,” he said.
“The Election Commission has no right to dismiss our government before the five-year term ends in March. Besides, the house hasn’t been dissolved by the governor on the recommendation of the council of ministers,” he said.
“We will also hold an assembly winter session sometime after the results are declared,” Singh said.
This piquant situation of two houses existing at the same time has only taken place once earlier in the history of independent India, say experts.
It happened for the first time in the mid-1960s in Tamil Nadu when an assembly continued for a few months even after the results were declared.
A petition was moved in the Himachal Pradesh high court earlier this week by a Congress activist, Sat Mahajan, as an individual and not on behalf of the party, urging that the counting of votes be postponed till March 9.
“Even though the petition has not been filed on behalf of the party, I agree with the logic of the petition,” Singh said.
The Election Commission has already stated that there is a provision in the constitution that two houses can exist at the same time as has happened once in Tamil Nadu.
Himachal Pradesh went to the polls in two stages on Nov 14 and Dec 19. Counting is on Dec 28.
The Election Commission decided to hold the polls three months earlier than scheduled probably to coincide with the Gujarat polls.