By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : Members of the Left parties and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) are among those who have said they will extend support to Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik when he goes to prove majority in the assembly Wednesday.
“There will be absolutely no problem to prove a majority. We have got the support of adequate number of legislators,” BJD spokesman Damodar Rout told IANS.
The BJD, which has 61 members, requires 13 more legislators to prove majority in the house of 147 members. The party claimed it has already got the support of more than 16 legislators.
“We are opposed to the BJP. Since the BJD no longer has ties with the BJP, we don’t have any problem. We will support the government,” said Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) legislator Narayan Reddy.
The CPI-M and Communist Party of India (CPI) have one member each in the assembly and both of them have said they will support the government.
Similarly, the JMM, which has four legislators, has also said the party will support the BJD in case of a floor test.
“We will vote in favour of the government,” JMM legislature party leader Bimal Lochan Das said.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has also announced that its two legislators will support the Patnaik government.
According to a senior BJD leader, at least eight independent lawmakers have also expressed their desire to support the BJD.
Patnaik’s government was reduced to a minority after his ally BJP, which has 32 members, withdrew support Saturday night following failure of seat sharing talks for the coming Lok Sabha polls.
The BJP and Congress party have demanded the imposition of President’s Rule. The BJP said it wants President’s Rule because people voted for the coalition, not the BJD alone.
Since the BJP has broken away from the BJD, the next elections should be held under President’s Rule in the state, said Congress leader Bhakta Charan Das.
Patnaik, along with more than 75 legislators, met Governor Murlidhar Chandrakant Bhandare at the Raj Bhavan Sunday and informed him that he had the support of the majority of legislators in the 147-seat house.
The governor asked the chief minister to prove majority in the assembly March 11.