Congress to hold meeting of newly-elected Himachal MLAs in Shimla Friday
Shimla (PTI): The Congress, which wrested power from the BJP in Himachal Pradesh, has convened a meeting of all its newly-elected MLAs here on Friday and the meet is likely to pass a resolution authorising the Congress president to pick the CLP leader.
The Congress on Thursday won 40 seats in the 68-member Assembly in the hill state which maintained its tradition of not voting any incumbent government to power since 1985.
Leader of the opposition Mukesh Agnihotri said that a meeting would be held in Shimla on Friday.
Deciding on the chief ministerial face who can bind the party going forward is the immediate challenge for the Congress.
State party president Pratibha Singh is considered a key frontrunner for the chief minister's post, closely followed by former party chief Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and outgoing CLP leader Mukesh Agnihotri.
AICC in-charge of Himachal Pradesh Rajeev Shukla had on Thursday said the Congress was happy that it is getting an opportunity to form the government in the state and asserted that the party will do everything to fulfil the 10 guarantees made to the people of the state and would provide better governance to people.
"The newly-elected Congress MLAs would meet in Shimla on Friday post-election results and decide on electing the new legislature party leader," Shukla had told PTI on Thursday.
Sources said the MLAs are likely to pass a one-line resolution authorising Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to decide the CLP leader. This has been the tradition in the Congress party, they said.
The party's two observers -- Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and senior leader from Haryana Bhupinder Singh Hooda-- along with Shukla are arriving in the state capital where all the party MLAs have been called.
While Shukla is AICC in charge of Himachal Pradesh, Baghel was appointed senior observer for the polls.
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Political strife erupts over South Korean court as it is set to determine fate of impeached Yoon
Seoul (AP): South Korea's acting leader vowed Tuesday to convey to the world that things are back to normal following parliament's impeachment of conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol, but rival parties began squabbling over the mechanics of a court ruling to determine whether to formally unseat or reinstate him.
The country's liberal opposition-controlled parliament voted to impeach Yoon last Saturday over his short-lived December 3 martial law imposition, suspending his presidential powers until the Constitutional Court determines whether to uphold or overturn the decision. If Yoon is dismissed, a national election must be held to pick his successor within two months.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who became acting leader, has taken steps to reassure the US and other countries and stabilise markets. Presiding over a Cabinet Council meeting on Tuesday, Han said he will “continuously do my utmost to inform the international society that Republic of Korea is fast regaining stability and maintain confidence with partners."
But the country's intense political strife appears to be far from over, as the rival parties began bickering over whether to fill three vacant justices' seats at the Constitutional Court.
To formally end Yoon's presidency, the nine-member court panel needs support from at least six justices. But since three seats remain vacant following retirements, a unanimous decision in favour of Yoon's impeachment is required to throw him out of office for good.
Three of the court's nine justices are directly appointed by the president. Three others are nominated by the Supreme Court head and another three by the National Assembly, and their formal appointments by the president has widely been a formality. The three seats that are currently open are to be nominated by the National Assembly — two by the Democratic Party and the other by Yoon's ruling People Power Party.
The court can rule on Yoon's case only with the current six justices. But the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, which led the impeachment efforts against Yoon, has said it would speed up the process of restoring the court's nine-justice system to promote fairness and public confidence in its ruling.
But PPP floor leader Kweon Seong-dong, a Yoon loyalist, created a stir Tuesday as he voiced his objection to a Democratic Party push to fill the three vacancies. He said it would be inappropriate for Han, the acting leader, to appoint justices nominated by parliament, saying such authorities solely rest with the president.
“An acting president can appoint Constitutional Court justices when there is a presidential vacancy, but not when the president's duties are just suspended,” Kweon said.
Many observers say the court's current six-member configuration is advantageous for Yoon's chances to return to office, as it would only require a single justice rejecting the parliament impeachment. They note Cheong Hyungsik, one of the six justices, is a clear conservative who was directly appointed by Yoon.
The Democratic Party quickly dismissed Kweon's argument as “absurd and utterly nonsensical” and urged PPP to abide by a November agreement between the rival parties to nominate the three Constitutional Court justices.
Party lawmaker and spokesperson Jo Seoung-lae said PPP has “blatantly revealed their true intention to obstruct the constitutional trial.”
There was no immediate response from Han, who during the Cabinet meeting stressed that the government will cooperate with the ruling and opposition parties to stabilize the economy.
There is no clear definition about what an acting president can and cannot do over the appointments of court justices. The Democratic party accuses PPP of trying to drag out the impeachment trial at the Constitutional Court, which has up to 180 days to determine Yoon's fate.
Time is a crucial issue for Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, who is favored by polls to win a presidential by-election in the event of Yoon's ouster but grapples with his own legal troubles. Lee could possibly be prohibited from running for president if the appellate and Supreme courts uphold his lower court conviction for election law violation in November.
Yoon faces allegations of rebellion and abuse of power over his martial law introduction. Investigative authorities want him to appear for questioning later this week, but officials at Yoon's office and residence on Monday refused to receive requests for his appearance.
The martial law declaration, the first of its kind in more than 40 years, drew hundreds of troops who tried to encircle parliament and prevent lawmakers from voting on the decree. Many lawmakers still managed to get inside a National Assembly chamber and voted to overturn Yoon's decree unanimously, forcing Yoon's Cabinet to lift it.
Yoon's decree, which harkened back to an era of past military-backed dictatorships, has sparked massive street protests calling for his ouster and resulted in his approval rating plummeting. Yoon's defense minister, police chief and several other senior military commanders have been arrested over their roles in the martial law enforcement.
Supporters of Yoon worry that his early exit would severely hamper the country's conservatives and cause them to likely lose a presidential by-election to the liberals, like they did in 2017, when then-impeached conservative President Park Geun-hye was ousted and arrested over a corruption scandal.
