MP: Congress MLA quits party, joins BJP; made Chairman of state-run corporation within hours
Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Congress MLA Pradyuman Singh Lodhi on Sunday resigned from the party and as a member of the state Assembly and joined the BJP before being appointed as the chairman of a state-run corporation with the rank of a cabinet minister.
Soon after he joined the BJP on Sunday afternoon, the party-led state government appointed Lodhi as the chairman of Madhya Pradesh State Civil Supplies Corporation.
Lodhi, who was a legislator from Bada Malhera seat in Chhatarpur district, joined the saffron party as its state headquarters here in the presence of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
On the occasion, state BJP chief V D Sharma announced Lodhi's induction into the party fold.
"I have resigned as MLA. My resignation has been accepted. Only the BJP can develop my Assembly seat areas. The chief minister also approved developmental schemes for my area," Lodhi told reporters after joining the party.
In the evening, the state government issued an order saying that Lodhi has been appointed as chairman of MP State Civil Supplies Corporation.
The government also accorded the rank of a cabinet minister to him, an official said.
In another order, the state government appointed Pradeep Jaiswal, an independent MLA from Waraseoni of Balaghat district, as Chairman of Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation Limited.
Jaiswal has also given the status of cabinet minister rank by the state government, the official said.
Jaiswal, a minister in the previous Congress government, had extended support to the BJP after the fall of the previous Kamal Nath government in March this year.
With Lodhi's resignation, the Congress's strength in the state Assembly reduced to 91.
In March this year, 22 Congress MLAs resigned from the Congress after former Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia quit the party, resulting in the collapse of the Kamal Nath-led Madhya Pradesh government.
On March 23, Chouhan took oath as chief minister for a record fourth term.
The BJP currently has 107 MLAs in the state Assembly.
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Six foreign nationals held for alleged prostitution in Bengaluru
Bengaluru (PTI): Six foreign women were arrested after they were found to be allegedly engaged in illegal activities by soliciting men in a public place for prostitution, police said on Tuesday.
The arrests were made by the Women Protection Wing of the Central Crime Branch (CCB) on April 24, they said.
Police, however, have not disclosed the nationalities of the women in the statement.
According to police, the operation was carried out following a tip off that some foreign women were standing near the footpath of the bus stop close to Madiwala Check Post, within the jurisdiction of Koramangala Police Station here and were soliciting men passing by on the road for prostitution.
Based on this information, the officers and staff of the CCB Women Protection Wing immediately visited the spot and conducted a verification, they said.
During the operation, it was found that six foreign women were engaging in illegal activities by soliciting men in a public place for prostitution, a statement issued by the office of the police commissioner stated.
Acting swiftly, the officers and staff conducted a raid and secured all six foreign women. Upon inquiry regarding their passports and visas, they failed to provide valid and satisfactory information, it said.
"Subsequently, all six foreign women were produced before the Koramangala Police Station along with a report for further legal action. In this regard, a case has been registered at Koramangala Police Station, and further investigation is in progress," the police statement added.
