Pema Khandu was back as the Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh on Saturday, with 33 MLAs of the People's Party of Arunachal Pradesh (PPA) joining the BJP. The development comes after Khandu was suspended on Thursday for allegedly trying to merge the PPA with the BJP.
The PPA's Takam Pario had taken over as Arunachal CM in the interim, with Khandu, Deputy CM Chowna Mein, Zingnu Namchom, Passang Dorjee Sona, Chow Tewa Mein, Jambey Tashi and Kamlung Mossang suspended from the PPA. Now, Khandu and 32 others from the PPA have joined the BJP, giving the saffron party the majority and therefore the right to form government in the state.
Khandu told reporters after the development: "We have joined BJP today. It is definitely a full-fledged BJP government in the state now. The paperwork has been submitted to the Legislative Assembly through the Speaker [Tenzing Norbu Thongdok]. There is no question of resigning since we have marched out of the PPA." He added: "Lotus has finally bloomed in Arunachal. The people of the state will see a new dawn of development in the new year under the new government."
Arunachal has been ruled by the Congress for several years, and it was their upstaging earlier this year that led to Khandu becoming chief minister. He also said on Saturday: "After several years of Congress misrule we observed that there was no visible development in the state. We joined the PPA with the intention to take the state to progress and prosperity, but there too, we find similar condition where the party president treated the MLAs undemocratically. So with focus on development, our MLAs decided to join the BJP for overall progress of the state."
He went on to add: "There was no significant development in the state since last year due to political turmoil, but now with NDA government at the Centre, the state will witness a sea change in the coming years." He also said: "Until and unless there is stability in the government, no development could take place. There will be no more dissident politics and we shall now only focus on development."
