BJP legislators back in Uttarakhand; Congress MLAs meet Governor

Dehradun: Over two dozen Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislators of Uttarakhand arrived to a grand welcome at the Jolly Grant airport here on Monday.

Hundreds of BJP activists massed at the airport exit to welcome the legislators, showering flowers and raising slogans.

The legislators had been camping in Jaipur, Gurgaon and New Delhi for the last one week since a political crisis erupted in Uttarakhand. 

State BJP president Teerath Singh Rawat said after his arrival that the state unit was thankful to President Pranab Mukherjee for signing the proclamation of central rule in the hill state.

"We are very thankful to Rashtrapatiji that he acted as the true custodian of the constitution," he added.

Other legislators targetted former chief minister Harish Rawat for drawing Prime Minister Narendra Modi into the issue and said he was doing so to deflect attention from his failures, poor governance and corruption. 

In a related development, Harish Rawat met Governor K.K. Paul along with Congress legislators at the Raj Bhawan, an official said. 

"We have come here to show our strength and protest against the decision taken against our government," Bajpur legislator Yashpal Arya said, adding the Rawat government should have been given time to prove its majority.