After jolts in Bihar and Gujarat, the Opposition on Saturday continued to be hit by desertions with three Uttar Pradesh MlCs, two from SP and one from BSP, quitting their respective parties and indicating at joining the BJP ranks.
The resignations of the sitting MlCs Bukkal Nawab and Yashwant Singh, both from the SP and Thakur Jaiveer Singh from the BSP-came on a day BJP chief Amit Shah arrived on a three-day visit to lucknow. A surprised SP, BSP and Congress blamed the ruling BJP for their move.
Nevertheless, it’s the Congress’ woes that seemed unending ahead of the August 8 Rajya Sabha elections. After six of its MlAs in Gujarat resigned, the once 57-member-strong party could shepherd only 44 of its remaining 51 legislators to a resort in Bengaluru. Seven MlAs, including Shankersinh Vaghela and his son, reportedly refused to go along.
Gujarat will see elections to three Rajya Sabha seats and a candidate needs 47 votes to win. Ominously for the Congress, it is already short by three votes. The BJP has fielded Amit Shah and Textiles Minister Smriti Irani while the Congress has fielded Ahmed Patel, political adviser to party president Sonia Gandhi, for the third seat. However, the BJP queered the pitch for Patel by fielding Balwantsinh Rajput, who quit Congress to join the BJP, for the third seat.
The Congress in Delhi moved the Election Commission to complain about the “assault on democracy”. “How come a party that doesn’t have enough MlAs to field a third candidate steals candidate from the Congress and puts that individual as the third candidateIJ MlAs had to be taken out of the State, that in itself is a black mark on the State Government and ruling party. It’s an assault on democracy,” senior Congress leader Anand Sharma said.
Chief Minister Vijay Rupani denied the Congress’ claims. “This is the internal problem of Congress as its leader of Opposition Shankarsinh Vaghela, its chief whip Balwantsinh Rajput and spokesperson Tajeshriben Patel have quit as they faced difficulties. They have taken their MlAs to Bengaluru as they do not have faith in their MlAs,” he said in Rajkot.
In a late evening development, the EC sought a report from the Chief Secretary of Gujarat by July 31 on the allegations made in the memorandum submitted by the Congress delegation and directed him to ensure security to all MlAs and their family members.
Sources said the Congress MlAs have been kept in the resort under a strict watch making them impossible to move out. However, Congress MP DK Suresh, who has been tasked to take care of them, said the Gujarat MlAs have come to visit religious places and take the blessings of the almighty to save the democracy.
But then, a section of the Congress’ legislators claimed that seven MlAs decided against going with them to Bengaluru. The seven include Vaghela, who has already quit the party, and his MlA son Mahendrasinh Vaghela.
While Vaghela came down heavily on Congress leadership Saturday for taking their MlAs from Gujarat to Bengaluru at a time when people in the State are suffering from floods, BJP’s Gujarat incharge Bhupendra Yadav also echoed similar views. “They have been taken to Bengaluru with so much expenses, given all facilities while the people are in distress. Today, when people are surrounded by floods due to natural calamity, Congress has switched off the phones of all its MlAs,” he said.
Meanwhile, in UP, after submitting his resignation, Bukkal Nawab, who is considered close to SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, said he was “feeling suffocated” in the party for the last one year and that he was ready to meet the BJP leadership if called by it. For his part, Jaiveer Singh alleged that the BSP has deviated from its path and, therefore, he resigned from the party.
SP chief and former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said he had met Nawab on Eid and wondered as to why he had a “sudden change of heart”.
“I will talk to him (Nawab), if he has not been kept hostage and ask him as to why he is not giving the ruling BJP leaders a chance to face the public (election)... (Why) some MlCs are being lured and tutored so as to enable (their leaders) to not face the people,” he told reporters here. In a statement, BSP president Mayawati said the BJP’s “greed for power has turned into lust for power”.