New Delhi: After issuing a directive to its Jharkhand MLAs not to vote in the Rajya Sabha polls in the
wake of Anshuman Mishra controversy, BJP is in a dilemma as its ally JMM is seeking its votes for the party`s candidate who may fall short of the required number to go through.
JMM leader and Deputy Chief Minister of Jharkhand
Hemant Soren met BJP President Nitin Gadkari, Leader of the
Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and her Rajya Sabha
counterpart Arun Jaitley to solicit their party`s support for
for JMM nominee R K Agarwal for the March 20 elections.
"Soren met me and sought the support of BJP MLAs. We have
not taken a decision yet as we have asked our MLAs to abstain
in view of largescale horse trading and malpractices," Swaraj
said.
She told Soren that since BJP will abstain, the required
majority would come down from 27 and JMM with its 18 MLAs will
easily win the Rajya Sabha seat from the state. BJP has 18
MLAs in Jharkhand Assembly.
Sources said the JMM leadership is not sure all its MLAs
will vote for the party candidate and hence wants to garner
the BJP votes too.
Mishra had filed his nomination as an independent for the
Rajya Sabha polls from Jharkhand. When the BJP top leadership
realised that his nomination was proposed by six BJP MLAs,
they objected and issued a directive to its legislators to
abstain from polling. He had then withdrawn his nomination.
But with other candidates in the fray, polling will
take place and JMM wants BJP support to make it a smooth
sailing for its candidate. One opinion in BJP is that it
should not be seen abstaining from voting for an ally.
PTI
