Mamata Banerjee has refused to resign as Chief Minister after the Trinamool Congress lost the West Bengal Assembly elections to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The BJP is expected to form the new government and may take oath on Saturday.
Despite the defeat, Mamata Banerjee said, “We have not been defeated, I will not resign.” She also alleged that the election process was unfair and claimed she and her party workers were mistreated at the counting centre.
The TMC leader lost from her Bhabanipur constituency to BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari by more than 15,000 votes.
Former Chief Election Commissioner S. Y. Quraishi said that in such a situation, the governor can ask the Chief Minister to resign. If that does not happen, Article 356, also known as President’s Rule, could be imposed in the state due to a constitutional breakdown.
He said there cannot be two chief ministers at the same time and that the Assembly must be handed over to the party with majority support.
Usually, an outgoing Chief Minister continues as a caretaker until the new government takes oath. However, experts say this situation is different because Mamata Banerjee is refusing to step down.
Senior Supreme Court advocate Sunil Fernandes said refusing to resign could create constitutional chaos.
Legal experts pointed out that the Constitution allows a Chief Minister to remain in office only if they have the support of the majority in the Assembly. With the BJP winning 207 seats and the TMC getting only around 80, the responsibility now shifts to the governor to transfer power.
Senior advocate Jayanta Narayan Chatterjee said such a situation has never been seen in independent India before.
