Election FAQs | How is state govt formed in case of no clear majority?

If no single party manages to get a clear majority, it is called a hung assembly

Polling for Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya has concluded and we now await the results on March 2. Exit polls released on Monday predict a clear majority for BJP and its allies in Tripura and Nagaland, however, Meghalaya may not get a majority party in the Assembly. Let us take a look at what happens in such a case.

In a scenario where no party or pre-poll alliance has a clear majority, it is called a hung Assembly. In this case, no party can form a government without support from other parties or independent MLAs.

The party offering external support isn’t usually part of the government and the politicians don’t hold ministerial positions.

The Governor invites the leader of the single largest party to form the government and usually gives the leader and the party 10 days to show a majority. If the party is unable to show a majority in the prescribed time period, the Governor dissolves the Assembly and calls for re-election. In the meantime, a President’s Rule is imposed on the state.

Let's take the example of Meghalaya. The state saw the BJP walking out of its alliance with the ruling NPP. NPP is likely to win 18-26 seats, according to three polls, while a fourth one (Jan Ki Baat) gave only 11-16. BJP may win 3-11 seats and could potentially align with the NPP once again. Congress is likely to win 3-12 seats while Trinamool Congress, which poached a number of Congress leaders, could win 8-14 seats. The state has 60 Assembly seats, and no party is likely to cross the majority mark. Therefore, alliances will have to be formed to form a government.