Opposition, NDA trade barbs over 'horse-trading' allegations in Bihar RS polls
New Delhi (PTI): Opposition parties on Tuesday alleged “horse-trading” in the Bihar Rajya Sabha elections, where all five seats were won by the BJP-led NDA, and demanded a review of the anti-defection law.
The BJP and its alliance partners rejected the allegations and said the opposition failed to manage its legislators and did not follow standard procedures of issuing a whip during voting.
"It is unfortunate that political morality has sunk to a nadir. People no longer respect the political parties that brought them into office. The time has come to seriously re-examine the anti-defection law, as allegations of horse-trading arise in every election. What used to be a retail activity has now become a mega mart operation," Congress MP Manish Tewari told reporters inside the Lok Sabha House complex.
RJD MP Sudhakar Singh alleged that the NDA secured victory by using "money power".
“Not only Tejashwi Yadav, but the entire country has levelled allegations of horse trading against the BJP. They did it in Haryana, Odisha, Bihar, and others.
"Elections are being fought without majority support, by using money power. Legislators are being broken away. This is not how a democracy should function. The anti-defection law exists precisely to prevent such actions -- that a party can only split if there is a two-thirds majority," Singh said.
Rejecting the allegations, BJP MP from Bihar's Paschim Champaran, Sanjay Jaiswal, said, “The Congress party did not issue a three-line whip, which is a standard practice during voting. Rahul Gandhi was holidaying in Cambodia, Tejashwi Yadav was vacationing in Europe --so their leaders were busy elsewhere as well. They could not even issue a whip, and now they are questioning who voted for whom.”
Defying a party whip can lead to the disqualification of a lawmaker under the anti-defection law.
JD(U) leader and Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh said that Tejashwi Yadav should introspect instead of levelling allegations.
“Tejashwi Yadav has to say something. What else can someone do after losing? He should look within his own house. Why is he unable to keep his own flock together? If you cannot manage your own house, you start blaming others.
"He had kept their MLAs confined in hotels, and even after that, he is making allegations. He needs to introspect. The people of Bihar are no longer with them. Lalu Prasad Yadav’s era is over, and he too will follow,” he said.
LJP (Ram Vilas) MP Arun Bharti said the results reflected the NDA’s unity and questioned the opposition leadership.
“We thank all NDA MLAs in Bihar who voted and ensured victory for our candidates. Earlier, the public did not trust Tejashwi Yadav and Rahul Gandhi; now even their own MLAs lack confidence in their leadership.
"They must honestly assess their leadership capacity, competence, and credibility, which are now under serious question,” he said.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and BJP national president Nitin Nabin were elected to the Rajya Sabha from Bihar on Monday when the ruling NDA made a clean sweep, clinching all five seats in the state.
Besides Kumar, who heads the JD(U), and Nabin, who is currently a member of the state assembly, the other winning candidates were Union minister Ram Nath Thakur (JDU), who made a hat-trick in the Upper House, the BJP's Shivesh Kumar, whose debut would make up for the party's lack of a Dalit face in Parliament from the state, and Rashtriya Lok Morcha president Upendra Kushwaha, who got elected for a second consecutive term.
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Will discuss with Karnataka MPs on state's irrigation projects: Shivakumar
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday said he, along with Ministers H K Patil and M B Patil, will discuss with MPs from the state on pending approvals for the state's irrigation projects.
Speaking to reporters at Kempegowda International Airport before leaving for Delhi, he said the Centre has kept clearances for several irrigation projects pending.
"The Central government has kept approvals pending for the state's irrigation projects. Therefore, H K Patil, M B Patil and I will meet all the MPs from Karnataka and hold discussions," Shivakumar said.
He added that the outcome of the deliberations would be shared later and that a collective effort would be made to press the Centre to take a decision.
"We will inform you about the details of the discussions after we return. We will collectively urge the central government to decide on irrigation issues," he said.
