Congress is left with 11 MLAs, leaving the V Narayanasamy government short of a majority
Months before an election, the Congress government has lost its thin majority in Puducherry with four MLAs resigning, two in the past two days.
Of the 30 elected MLAs in the assembly, Congress had 15 members and, along with the DMK's three and one independent, was just past the majority mark.
After the resignations, the government and the opposition both are at 14. The Congress has 10 members, leaving the V Narayanasamy government one short of the majority mark, which is now 15 with the assembly strength dropping to 28.
The exits come just before Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's visit to Puducherry tomorrow to prep election strategy, his first since the party took power in the Union Territory.
The MLAs resigned over the last few weeks. Two of them -- A Namassivayam and E.Theeppainjan -- resigned on January 25. Both have joined the BJP. On Monday, Malladi Krishna Rao quit and today, John Kumar resigned as MLA. N.Dhanavelou was disqualified for alleged anti-party activities last year.
Malladi Krishna Rao's move was surprising as he had last week accompanied the Chief Minister when he went to Delhi to request the removal of Kiran Bedi as Lieutenant Governor.
Mr Namassivayam's switch to the BJP is also a big setback for the Congress; the former Congress Puducherry chief played a big role in consolidating the party's base in Puducherry. Along with him, several more Congress functionaries walked out.
Mr Namassivayam's last few years in the Congress had been marked by disappointment.
During the 2016 state election campaign, he had been widely tipped to be Chief Minister but the post went to Mr Narayanasamy, an outside who didn't even contest the polls. His resentment grew when the post of Puducherry Congress chief went to AV Subramanian.
The BJP, which has never had much of a presence in Puducherry, said the Congress imports would bolster the party considerably in the polls. The ruling party has been trying to improve its footprint in the south by bringing in strong leaders from rival parties.
Elections are due by May in Puducherry and neighbouring Tamil Nadu, besides Kerala, West Bengal and Assam. The BJP has not much hopes from Tamil Nadu and Kerala but reckons a better chance in Puducherry now, with the Congress considerably weakened and at odds with the DMK here; the Congress and DMK are allies in Tamil Nadu but are likely to contest separately in Puducherry.
The Congress had won 15 assembly seats in the 2016 polls, including that of the Speaker. It took power with the support of the DMK and an Independent.
The opposition AIADMK has four MLAs, the AINRC has seven and there are three nominated members of the BJP.
