IMPHAL July 7: The Congress MLAs pushing for reshuffle have decided to wait till the end of budget session after 20 MLAs met the Chief Minister on Monday and will now take part in it, a highly placed source told IFP.
According to the source, around 20 dissident Congress MLAs met Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh at around 10 am, and submitted their demands for reshuffle of the 10 cabinet ministers.
The CM told them that the party high command has been apprised about the matter during his Delhi visit and that he can only take action after the budget session which starts from July 11. The CM also did not reveal which cabinet ministers would be dropped and which MLA inducted, added the source.
A dissident MLA who doesn’t want to be named told IFP that as the CM assured to fulfil their demand of a mid-term reshuffle and they have decided to participate in the budget sessions in the interest of the people.
The MLAs clarified that no memorandum was submitted to the CM during the meeting, they have however kept a draft copy in case government backtracks.
The MLAs confidently said it is crystal-clear there will be a reshuffle after the assembly session, so they will not insist on an MoU.
The dissident MLAs took the decision on the matter in a meeting at the quarters of the Lamlai MLA at around 6 pm after meeting the CM on Monday.
Some Congress MLAs have been pushing for a mid-term reshuffle of the cabinet ministers. CM Ibobi and Dy Chief Minister Gaikhangam went to Delhi on July 1 to apprise the party high command about the MLAs’ demand.
The MLAs are now in the majority as all the parliamentary secretaries and the five MLAs who recently left the MSCP have joined the MLAs demanding the reshuffle.