BJP forms government in Arunachal with 33 PPA MLAs’ support

Khandu paraded the MLAs before Assembly Speaker Tenzing Thongdok who accepted their joining. The high-voltage political drama began since Thursday night after PPA President Kahfa Bengia temporarily suspended Khandu, Chowna Mein and five legislators from the primary membership of the party for anti-party activities. 

The PPA, an alliance partner of the North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) government in the state, on Friday selected Takam Pario as the new chief minister of the state. However, the political equation changed when majority of the PPA MLAs who initially extended support to Pario, later shifted their allegiance to Khandu. The PPA on Saturday also suspended four other party MLAs including Honchun Ngandam. “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,” Khandu told reporters. 

Elaborating on the decision to merge with the BJP, the chief minister said that circumstances compelled the MLAs to take the decision in the interest of the people and the state. “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.