The opposition Congress party chartered a plane to fly its lawmakers out of Madhya Pradesh in two batches on Tuesday amid fears of poaching ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections scheduled for June 18. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has fielded three candidates in the state, even as it needs the support of nine additional assembly members to secure the third seat.
Congress lawmakers gathered at the residence of Umang Sengar, leader of the opposition in the state assembly, before leaving for Congress-ruled Karnataka. The first flight is scheduled to depart at 2:30 pm, followed by another flight in the evening.
The Congress, over the years, has relied on DK Shivakumar, who took charge as Karnataka chief minister this month, to manage crises across states.
Sengar insisted that they did not force anyone to move to Karnataka and that it was voluntary. “If some legislators want to stay in Madhya Pradesh, they can. We have full confidence in all the legislators, but we remain vigilant against the poaching policies of the BJP. The BJP should focus on keeping the legislators under control,” he said.
Congress MP Sheopur Babu Jandal said all lawmakers have been asked to prepare for a 10-day trip to Bengaluru. “We are going and will discuss strengthening the party.”
The lawmakers will return to Bhopal on June 18, people familiar with the matter said.
Congress member Vikrant Boria on Monday accused the BJP of offering millions of dollars to its leaders and threatening them. “They are trying to kill constitutional rights, but we will not allow that.”
BJP spokesperson Hitesh Bajpai said the Congress is changing legislators due to lack of confidence, reflecting doubt about their decision to support a candidate who does not have established support.
The BJP has fielded a third candidate, Mukesh Kivat, against Meenakshi Natarajan of the Congress. Congress leader Naresh Gyanchandani resigned from Congress over Natarajan’s nomination.
A Rajya Sabha candidate needs 58 votes to win in the 230-member Madhya Pradesh state assembly. The Bharatiya Janata Party has 164 representatives and has the support of dissident Congresswoman Nirmala Sapre. He is comfortably positioned to win two seats.
The Congress has 61 legislators after the Madhya Pradesh High Court nullified the election of Mukesh Malhotra for not declaring criminal cases in his election affidavit. Rajendra Bharti, another Congress lawmaker, was disqualified after being found guilty of fraud. The Congress has the support of Kamleshwar Dudiyar of the Bharatiya Adivasi Party.
The biennial elections will be held on June 18 for 24 Rajya Sabha seats in 10 states, with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance seeking a two-thirds majority in the Upper House. The BJP is the largest party with 113 members (including five nominated legislators). The National Democratic Rally holds 149 seats in the 245-member House of Representatives.
Of the 24 vacant seats, the BJP held 12, the Congress four, the Telugu Desam Party one and the YSR Congress three. One of the seats that fell vacant due to the death of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren will also go to the polls, as will one each in Meghalaya, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur.
By-elections are being held for one seat each in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. June 8 (Monday) was the last date for submitting nominations.
