New Delhi:
The BJP pulled off a stunning extra seat in the Rajya Sabha from Uttar Pradesh today — with some help from Jayant Chaudhary’s Rashtriya Lok Dal and a handful of Samajwadi Party rebels. It was a blow for Opposition bloc INDIA, which was looking for two more seats in the Upper House in this round of election.
The second bonus seat won by the BJP was in Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh, with cross-voting by six Congress MLAs.
In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP had forced an election by fielding an eighth candidate for the state’s 10 seats. The numbers decreed that seven seats would go to the BJP and three to the Samajwadi Party.
But as early as yesterday, BJP leaders started claiming in private that a clutch of Samajwadi Party MLAs would cross-vote today. The numbers quoted varied between 7 and 10.
By late evening, the writing was on the wall, with eight MLAs staying away from a meeting called by party chief Akhilesh Yadav. This morning, ahead of elections, the party’s chief whip resigned.
The actual voting today contained suspense and drama, with seven members of the Samajwadi Party cross-voting. The vote of one SP MLA was deemed invalid.