Congress shifts Odisha MLAs to Bengaluru resort ahead of RS polls

New Delhi: Ahead of the March 16 Rajya Sabha elections, the Indian National Congress has moved eight of its legislators from Odisha to Bengaluru in a bid to prevent possible cross-voting. The lawmakers have been lodged at a private resort in Bidadi, on the outskirts of the city, amid concerns that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party could attempt to poach them ahead of the crucial vote, The News Minute reported.

According to reports, the legislators and their families arrived in Bengaluru on the night of March 12. Their stay is being coordinated under the supervision of Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar.

The MLAs currently staying at the resort are Rajan Ekka, Ashok Das, Appala Kumar Swamy, Mangu Killo, Pavitra Sauntha, Nilamadhav Hikka, Prafulla Pradhan and Sathyajit Gomongo. Senior Congress leaders in Karnataka met the visiting legislators, along with Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president Bhakta Charan Das, on Friday evening.

Speaking to reporters, Shivakumar said that the legislators had travelled to Bengaluru on their own.

Asked whether he had been tasked with preventing cross-voting or a possible “Operation Lotus”, Shivakumar said he would do whatever the party asked him to do. He said that it happened in all states and that it was nothing new. He added that the MLAs felt Bengaluru was a safe place to stay. He also noted that he had handled similar political situations in the past, including during the Rajya Sabha election of Ahmed Patel.

In the 147-member Odisha Assembly, the BJP holds 79 seats, the Biju Janata Dal has 51, the Congress has 14, and others hold three. Four Rajya Sabha seats are up for election, with five candidates in the fray. The Congress and BJD have jointly fielded Datteshwar Hota. While the BJP is expected to win two seats and the BJD one, neither side currently has the required 30 first-preference votes needed to secure the fourth seat.