New Delhi: Meghalaya Chief Minister J D Rymbai resigned on Saturday following directions from the Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Rymbai resigned from his post after a brief tenure of eight months just a day ahead of the commencement of budget session of the assembly.
Rymbai received the backing of coalition partners of the ruling Congress-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance on Friday night and was quoted by news agency PTI as saying defiantly that he would not step down.
He submitted his papers to Governor M M Jacob on Saturday morning.
Senior Congress leader and Union minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi who arrived in Shillong held a meeting with Rymbai, after which the chief minister went to Raj Bhavan and put in his papers.
In a meeting with Sonia Gandhi on March 6 in New Delhi, Rymbai was asked to quit the office of chief ministership and hand over the mantle to his predecessor D D Lapang.
Earlier, Rymbai had been asked to step down by two AICC functionaries - Oscar Fernandes and Ved Prakash, who visited Shillong on February 26.
Rymbai was sworn in as chief minister on June 15 last year succeeding D D Lapang following resentment among a section of Congress legislators.
The issue of change of leadership has been dogging the 29-member CLP since early last year. Although Lapang was removed, the leadership issue did not die down with Lapang loyalists demanding his reinstatement..
Congress is the major partner in the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance, with the other constituents being regional parties. The state would go to polls early next year.
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