Two Madhya Pradesh BJP MLAs skip party meeting

BHOPAL: Two BJP MLAs Narayan Tripathi and Sharad Kol on Tuesday did not turn up for a party meeting here, a development that may have set off alarm bells in the saffron outfit ahead of the March 26 biennial polls for three Rajya Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh.nnGoing against party lines, both the opposition lawmakers had voted for a Congress-sponsored bill in the Assembly in July last year.nnWhen contacted, Tripathi told PTI over the phone that he was too busy in Delhi and that’s why couldnt make it to the meeting called by the state BJP in view of the upcoming RS polls.nn”Similarly, I have come to know that Kol was at his village due to some important work,” he added.nnBoth the MLAs were once in the Congress and are not getting along well with the BJP, sources close to them said.nnMadhya Pradesh BJP president V D Sharma could not be contacted for comments despite repeated calls.nnHowever, another state BJP leader confirmed that both the MLAs gave the meeting a miss, but declined to shed more light of the development.nnIn the backdrop of the July incident, the state BJP is not taking any chances and holding meetings with its MLAs in groups here for the last two days (Monday-Tuesday) to keep its flock together and prevent any cross-voting in the RS polls.nnThe faction-ridden Congress, too, is a worried lot and wants it MLAs to stay united for the Upper House polls.nnSharma, Leader of Opposition Gopal Bhargava, party’s chief whip in the assembly Narottam Mishra, BJP vice-president Shivraj Singh Chouhan and MP BJP organisation general secretary Suhas Bhagat held meetings with MLAs in batches since Monday.nnLikewise, Congress general secretary in-charge of Madhya Pradesh Deepak Babaria arrived here on Tuesday for meetings with state leaders and MLAs ahead of the RS polls.nnAccording to sources in the BJP, in meetings, the state leadership has told the party legislators to stay alert and promptly inform them in case they are approached by the rival camp in connection with the RS polls.nnAccording to talks in state Congress circles, around nine party MLAs are unhappy with the leadership and some of them are eying Cabinet berths.nnAmid preparations for the RS polls, Congress veteran Digvijaya Singh on Monday made a sensational claim that his party MLAs were being offered “huge money by BJP leaders” as part of the saffron party’s “poaching” attempt to destabilise the Kamal Nath government.nnThe BJP, however, has rejected the Congress allegations outright.nnAfter losing the Lok Sabha polls to BJP MP Pragya Thakur from Bhopal last year, Singh might seek re-election to the Upper House of Parliament, Congress sources said.nnThe ruling party may field former Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in the RS elections, they said.nnScindia, like Singh, had lost general elections from Guna.nnThe BJP may renominate former Union minister and Dalit leader Satyanarayan Jatiya in the RS polls, party sources said.nnThe three RS seats, which are falling vacant, are currently held by Singh (Congress), Jatiya and Prabhat Jha (both from BJP).nnThe BJP will make all out effort to retain the two seats, where the Congress wants to take it tally to two from one as it has more legislators this time around.nnThe 230-member Assembly has 114 Congress MLAs followed by the BJP (107). The simple majority mark is 116.nnFour Independent MLAs, two lawmakers of the BSP and one of the Samajwadi Party (SP) are providing crucial support to the Congress government. Two seats are vacant following the demise of a Congress and a BJP legislator.nnMembers of a state’s Legislative Assembly vote in the Rajya Sabha elections.nnSource: Press Trust of India