In a desperate measure to prevent horse-trading and defections over the coming Rajya Sabha election, due to take place on Thursday, a worried Rajasthan BJP on Tuesday tried to confine all its MLAs at a resort near Jaipur.
With the Rajya Sabha polls just two days away, the BJP is getting desperate to keep its flock together. The resort will be the temporary address of these MLAs for the next two days. One of the MLAs herded along with the saffron men is from the JD(U).
Said former Rajasthan chief minister and party general secretary Vasundhara Raje: “The MLAs have been brought to the resort as they need to be trained to cast their votes.”
The BJP, with 79 legislators in its kitty, had issued a whip to them to vote for party candidates V.P. Singh and Ram Jethmalani. But a section of the MLAs appears to be vehemently opposed to Mr Jethmalani’s nomination. Mr Jethmalani had not just criticised former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, one of the BJP’s tallest leaders, in the 2004 general election, but had also contested against Mr Vajpayee from the Lucknow Lok Sabha constituency. Mr Jethmalani had also been speaking in favour of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. Both Mr Singh and Mr Jethmalani are also staying in the resort and are expected to meet the party legislators.
Denying charges that the party MLAs were being forcibly confined, BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said: “Ram Jethmalani is our official candidate. This was a collective decision taken by our party president Nitin Gadkari after consultations with the central and Rajasthan party units. The final word came from the parliamentary board. We don’t expect any problems at all.”
The situation, however, appears somewhat grim for the saffron brigade as nearly 12 legislators had not yet reached the resort till late on Tuesday evening. To make matters worse, senior state leader and MLA Devi Singh Bhati kept complaining: “It’s wrong to confine us here in the resort.”
Among the legislators missing till Tuesday evening were Anil Jain, Habiburahman, Shankar Rawat, Ashok Picha and Babulal Kharadi. Senior state BJP leaders, however, claimed that these MLAs “are in touch with us, and would reach any moment.”
The decision to nominate Mr Jethmalani, taken jointly by Mr L.K. Advani and party president Nitin Gadkari, has ruffled quite a few feathers in the BJP. Some senior leaders such as Mr Arun Jaitley are also reportedly not too happy about the decision.
Besides Mr Advani and Mr Gadkari, Mr Jethmalani’s candidature was also reportedly backed by Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi. Mr Modi and other top Gujarat BJP leaders are believed to be getting assistance from Mr Jethmalani in certain legal matters.
Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot, meanwhile, met state Congress MLAs to discuss the Rajya Sabha polls.