BHOPAL: Evading meetings with the Assembly Speaker, the Congress rebel MLAs owing allegiance to Jyotiraditya Scindia released a series of videos in which some of them claimed that they felt unsafe under the Kamal Nath government in Madhya Pradesh.
All the 22 rebels, including the six legislators/expelled ministers whose resignations from Vidhan Sabha were accepted on Friday, released videos to make their stands clear on Sunday.
In the videos, the rebels claimed that they had not been held captive or kidnapped but were in Bengaluru on their own. Also, they claimed that they wanted to come to meet the Speaker, but sought CRPF protection first in Bhopal. Claiming that they had resigned on their own, the rebels added that their kin were being pressured to lodge missing or abduction complaints.
Reacting to the latest videos of the rebels, MP Public Relations Minister PC Sharma claimed that the MLAs seem to be under the influence of tantra-mantra or could even have been hypnotised. “They also seem to be terrorised for making such statements on camera.”
The 22 MLAs were flown to Bengaluru on March 9 and had subsequently sent their resignations to Speaker Narmada Prasad Prajapati and Governor Lalji Tandon on March 10. Resignations of six of those MLAs (who were sacked as ministers by Governor CM’s advice on Friday) were accepted on Saturday, leaving the total number of rebel MLAs to 16.
Meanwhile, Prajapati kept the issue of deciding on the resignation of the remaining 16 MLAs pending on Sunday. “I waited for the remaining MLAs (who had resigned on March 10), particularly the nine MLAs who were asked to appear before me for Saturday on Sunday also, but none of them turned up.”
“In the wake of the news reports about the MLAs, I am concerned about them. All other pillars of democracy too need to show concern about the MLAs,” the Speaker said.
Now, Congress MLAs from Gujarat land in Jaipur
After 82 Congress MLAs, who were kept in Jaipur, went back to Bhopal on Sunday morning, it was now the turn of MLAs from Gujarat to flock to Rajasthan. Wary of cross-voting in the Rajya Sabha election, Gujarat Congress has now shifted 14 MLAs to Jaipur.
The MLAs started arriving on Saturday late evening and are being put up at Shiv Vilas hotel on Jaipur-Delhi Highway. Congress sources say around three dozen MLAs will be made to stay in Jaipur. Earlier, three BJP and two Congress candidates had filed nomination for four Rajya Sabha seats, resulting in the decision to send the MLAs to Rajasthan. Rajesh Asnani
HECTIC SUNDAY
The 80-odd Congress and Independent MLAs returned to Bhopal from Jaipur and were housed at a hotel, just two km from the Madhya Pradesh Assembly The BJP issued a whip to its 107 MLAs to remain in the House and vote against the trust motion.
The Samajwadi Party also ordered its lone legislator Rajesh Shukla to vote for the Kamal Nath government.
Series of meetings at the CM House attended by senior Congress leaders, including CM Kamal Nath former Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat, and ex-CM Digvijaya Singh.
The meeting of Congress Legislature Party was slated at CM House in the evening Leader of Opposition Gopal Bhargava met Governor Lalji Tandon informing about electronic voting system in Vidhan Sabha not functioning fully
In Delhi, ex-MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan met with Jyotiraditya Scindia, Dharmendra Pradhan and Narendra Singh Tomar at Tomar’s residence
The BJP leaders met Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to discuss various legal angles of trust vote in the AssemblyChouhan met BJP MLAs at Gurugram. Likely to meet Amit ShahJyotiraditya Scindia to arrive in Bhopal on Sunday night or Monday morning.