Rajya Sabha Elections: Congress claims poaching attempt by BJP, shifts Madhya Pradesh MLAs to Bengaluru

The Congress reportedly shifted 35 of its 62 MLAs in Madhya Pradesh to Bengaluru, alleging poaching attempts by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the Rajya Sabha Elections. These MLAs are eligible to vote in the 18 June Rajya Sabha polls.

The first batch of 35 MLAs left for Bengaluru with their family members by a charter flight. "The rest will leave by evening," state Congress Media Cell Chairman Mukesh Nayak told PTI.

Nayak said that the Leader of Opposition in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly, Umang Singhar, accompanied the MLAs.

The Congress decided to move its MLAs to party-ruled Karnataka to keep its flock together and prevent cross-voting, another leader was quoted as saying on Tuesday.

Rajya Sabha number game in MP

The 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assembly makes up the Electoral College for the 18 June elections to the Upper House of Parliament.

With the Assembly's effective strength being 229, a candidate requires 58 first-preference votes to win.

The BJP has 164 MLAs and the Congress 64, while the Bharat Adivasi Party holds one seat. The opposition party's effective tally, however, is 62, as Congress leader Rajendra Bharti's membership as a legislator from the Datia constituency has been revoked, and the high court barred Mukesh Malhotra, Congress MLA from Vijaypur, from voting.

How many MP Rajya Sabha seats can BJP, Congress win?

The ruling BJP, which has 164 MLAs, is assured of winning two seats with 116 votes, while the Congress, which has 62 MLAs, can win one seat.

The BJP initially fielded its national general secretary Tarun Chugh and state unit secretary Rajneesh Agrawal.

Subsequently, it fielded Mahesh Kewat, chairman of the Madhya Pradesh Fishermen Welfare Board, as a third candidate, thus adding a twist to the election.

The Congress nominated former MP Meenakshi Natarajan as its sole candidate.

Congress veteran Digvijaya Singh, who vacated the third seat after the completion of his second term in the Rajya Sabha, said the BJP was seeking to defeat a woman candidate while professing to support women's reservation in legislatures.

"The BJP has been making tall claims about implementing the Women's Reservation Bill, but in reality, it has always opposed it. When the then Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, introduced women's reservation in Pachayati Raj bodies, the party had opposed it. Even the RSS is anti-women as no woman can become a 'Pracharak' in the RSS," he was quoted by PTI as saying.

"So today, when the Congress has fielded a woman candidate for the third seat, the BJP has pitted against her a candidate whom it had expelled from the party in 2022. This has exposed the BJP and its discipline," said Singh.

"Our 62 MLAs will ensure the victory of the Congress candidate with their full might....Meenakshi Natarajan will get all 62 votes and even more," said the former chief minister.

'BJP trying to buy Congress MLAs'

The Congress Legislature Party held a meeting late Monday night at Singhar's residence and the legislators were consulted about the proposal to move them out of Madhya Pradesh, sources told PTI.

As many as 60 MLAs attended the meeting, they said, adding that one MLA did not attend because he was in Delhi, while senior leader Kamal Nath participated online.

Speaking to PTI, LoP Singhar alleged that the BJP was trying to "buy" Congress MLAs.

Some party MLAs told him that BJP members had approached them with "bags full of notes," but they turned them away, he said, adding that the BJP's "conspiracies" will fail on the voting day.

Yadavendra Singh, another state Congress legislator, said some MLAs were not in favour of being moved out, but since it was the party high command's decision, everyone was being shifted.

He reiterated the allegation that the BJP was attempting to poach Congress MLAs.