Haryana Rajya Sabha polls: Congress MLAs reach Himachal Pradesh to prevent cross-voting

Ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections slated for March 16, a group of Haryana Congress legislators left their own State on Friday, heading for the Congress-ruled State of Himachal Pradesh, party sources said.

Of the 37 Congress MLAs in the Haryana Assembly, about 30 reportedly left for the neighbouring hill State following a party meeting in Chandigarh. Party insiders said the move was aimed at keeping the flock together and eliminating any risk of cross-voting in what is expected to be a closely fought election.

The election for Haryana’s two vacant Rajya Sabha seats has three candidates in the fray. The Congress has fielded Karmavir Singh Boudh, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nominated Sanjay Bhatia. The presence of a third Independent candidate Satish Nandal, has made it a tight contest, forcing the Congress to leave nothing to chance.

Tight contest

A leader privy to the development, requesting anonymity, confirmed that the group of Congress MLAs has reached the capital of Himachal Pradesh. “They reached Shimla in the evening and are staying in two different hotels,” said the source. Following a meeting at the residence of Congress Legislature Party leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda, a majority of the legislators departed in two Tempo Travellers. At least five MLAs stayed behind, citing personal and family commitments. Mr. Hooda himself also remained in Chandigarh.

Haryana Congress president Rao Narender Singh and party general secretary and State in-charge B.K. Hariprasad accompanied the legislators.

“Today, we held the CLP meeting. All the 37 MLAs participated and they asserted that they will unitedly vote for the Congress candidate,” Mr. Hooda told journalists. Responding to a question on where the MLAs were being sent, Mr. Hooda said, “We have not sent them anywhere. I don’t know if anyone has gone. It’s their free will; they asked me if they could go for a trip, I said you may and come back on March 16.”

The 90-member Haryana Assembly comprises 48 MLAs from the ruling BJP, 37 from the Congress, two from the Indian National Lok Dal, and three Independent legislators. A candidate requires at least 31 votes to be elected to the Rajya Sabha from Haryana.