GUWAHATI: This can possibly happen only in Arunachal, known for political instability.
Pema Khandu has served as chief minister under the banner of three different political parties and that too, in less than six months.
So far, he has served as Congress, People’s Party of Arunachal (PPA) and BJP chief minister.
He and 32 of his 43 PPA MLAs “merged” with BJP on Saturday, thereby, perhaps, bringing a temporary end to the fresh political crisis, which was triggered by the suspension of 19 PPA MLAs.
The 38-year-old Khandu, son of former Chief Minister the late Dorjee Khandu who died in a chopper crash in 2011, was a minister during the bitter power struggle between his predecessors Nabam Tuki and the late Kalikho Pul.
In July, the Supreme Court had reinstated the Tuki government leading to the return of rebel Congress MLAs to the grand old party fold. The Congress had then replaced Tuki and appointed Khandu as the new Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader. On July 17, he took oath as Congress chief minister.
However, just two months later in September, 44 of the then 45 Congress MLAs, except Tuki, ditched the Congress by defecting to PPA, thereby making it a PPA-led government with Khandu continuing as the CM.
The latest development has made Khandu a BJP chief minister.