Rajya Sabha election generates political heat, legislators coming today in Bhopal

BHOPAL: The Rajya Sabha election to be held on June 19 has generated a lot of political heat. Both BJP and Congress called their respective legislators to the state capital on Wednesday.

The Congress is going to hold meetings of its law-makers at the residence of former chief minister Kamal Nath on June 17 and 18.

State in charge of the party Mukul Wasink will also attend the meetings. He will visit the state for the first time after becoming the in charge of party’s state unit.

The BJP, too, has called their legislators to Bhopal. The party may hold a meeting of its legislators on Wednesday. Party’s state in charge Vinay Shahashrabuddhe and Union minister Prakash Javadekar are also arriving in the city. BJP legislators will meet in their presence.

According to the number of legislators of each party in the House, the BJP should get two seats and the Congress one. BSP, SP and Independent legislators have yet to open their cards.

Fifty-two votes are required to elect an RS member. The BJP has 107 members in the House. The party is all set to get two seats.

On the other hand, the Congress has 92 members, and it will need 12 members more to win two seats.

BSP, SP and Independent legislators had been with the Congress government. Former chief ministers Digvijaya Singh and Kamal Nath are pulling out all the stops to keep those legislators with the Congress.

For five votes, the Congress is sparing no effort to make a dent in the walls of the BJP and woo its legislators.

Two BJP legislators Narayan Tripathi and Sharad Kol had once supported the Congress, so the party is trying to cotton up to them again.

The problem with these legislators is that if they violate the party whip they will lose their membership.

The BJP is also trying to keep its flock together. Home minister Narottam Mishra has been asked to deal with the BSP, SP and Independent legislators that they may vote in favour of the BJP.

Senior BJP leaders are also in contact with the party MLAs so that they may not vote for the Congress.

Mishra said all the legislators would remain at the places where they generally stay.

All of them will stay in their residences, Mishra said, adding that, the BJP would easily win two seats. According to general secretary of the Congress Rajiv Singh, a two-day meeting of party legislators will be held, and that they have been told to stay the way they want. Singh said the party was fully prepared to fight the RS election.