Congress MLAs return to Jaipur before Rajya Sabha polls; Gehlot vows to 'teach BJP lesson'

A day ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections in Rajasthan, Congress MLAs reached the state's capital, Jaipur on June 9. Since June 3, the Congress MLAs were lodged at a hotel in Udaipur, as the high command feared horse-trading at the hands of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the elections. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot was also lodged at the same hotel in the lake city. 

'We are winning all three seats': CM Ashok Gehlot

Returning to Jaipur from Udaipur, Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot addressed the media at the airport. "The BJP every time tries to do this (horse trading)...We want to teach them a lesson this time, so that never in the future a situation of this sort arises. We are winning all three seats this time...there's no difficulty and we are all united. 

"They (BJP) are so scared by this that as you can see, sometimes they are going to the Election Commission...the other times to the Enforcement Directorate and the Central Bureau of Investigation. What is the point of roping them in? They are also going to the High Court the Supreme Court," the Rajasthan Chief Minister said. Interestingly, before taking the MLAs to Udaipur, Congress had filed a complaint against BJP with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB). 

Neck-to-neck fight for 5th RS seat in Rajasthan 

There are four Rajya Sabha seats in Rajasthan and five candidates in the running. Congress has fielded three candidates – party general-secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala, former Union Minister Mukul Wasnik, and Uttar Pradesh leader Pramod Tiwari. The BJP has fielded one candidate, former MLA Ghanshyam Tiwari. In a surprise move, it also decided to back Independent candidate and media baron Subhash Chandra.

Of the 200 seats in the Rajasthan Assembly, the Congress has 108 and the BJP has 71. The former can win two seats and the latter one. The fifth seat is where the fight begins. Subhash Chandra has claimed that he is going to win through cross-voting by Congress MLAs. Four Congress MLAs are already supporting him and "eight will crossvote" in his favour. 

Image: ANI