Congress Accuses BJP Of Destablising Rajasthan Govt; Moves Its MLAs To Resort Over Fear Of Poaching

The congress party in Rajasthan in on alert ahead of Rajya Sabha elections scheduled on June 19. It has sent some of its MLAs to a resort to ensure that they are not accessible for anyone looking to lure them.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.

Jaipur: Rajasthan government's chief whip Mahesh Joshi on Wednesday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of poaching its MLAs and said that attempts are being made to lure its members to destabalise a democratically-elected government in the state. As per latest reports, the Congress party's independent MLAs have been taken to a luxury resort in Jaipur. Alleging attempts to poach the party MLAs and the independent legislators backing the government, Joshi lodged an official complaint with Director General , Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) demanding a strict action against BJP workers who are trying to lure its MLAs with money power. Joshi, in his letter addressed to the DG ACB, said, "On the lines of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, there has been an information coming via our reliable sources about efforts being made by the BJP to destabilise the government in Rajasthan by luring Congress as well as Independent MLAs who are supporting our government." "This despicable attempt is not only against democratic values but also against people's expectations. This is illegal, unethical, condemnable and invites legal action. Strict action should be taken against those involved in such a despicable crime who are trying to lure people's representatives and destabilise the government," the letter said. 3 Rajya Sabha seats will go to polls on June 19 in Rajasthan where Congress has nominated two candidates -- K.C. Venugopal and Neeraj Dangi, while BJP has also fielded two candidates -- Rajendra Gehlot and Omkar Singh Lakhawat, making the elections interesting. Earlier in the day, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala landed in Jaipur to take stock of the situation and keep the Congress flock together.  Surjewala reached the resort where Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot along with 90 MLAs from Congress and Independents are lodged. Meanwhile, speculations were rife that the state minister Vishvendra Singh who is not going along well with the Gehlot camp, has not reached the resort. Singh is known to be from Sachin Pilot camp. An initial meeting of a few MLAs was held at the Chief Minister's residence but then all senior leaders went to the resort to chalk out further strategy. In the assembly of 200, the Congress has 107 MLAs, including six those who defected to the party from the BSP last year. The party enjoys the support of 12 of the 13 Independent MLAs in the state.