RS poll: Cong banks on all non-NDA MLAs

NT Correspondent

Ramanagara: Congress had been trying to reach out to all non-NDA (National Democratic Alliance) MLAs in Karnataka to be able to get all three of their candidates elected to the Rajya Sabha.

Congress boasts of 135 MLAs. The principal Opposition BJP has 66 MLAs while alliance partners JD(S) have 19.

This leaves four other MLAs to woo. Darshan Puttannaiah of Sarvodaya Karnataka Paksha (SKP) allied with the Congress to get elected from Melukote in Mandya district last May.

Independent MLAs from Harapanahalli (Vijayanagara district) Latha Mallikarjun and Gauribidanur (Chikkaballapur district) KH Puttaswamy Gowda are also said to be leaning towards Congress.

This leaves Gangavathi MLA Gali Janardana Reddy who contested on a ticket from the party he launched Kalyana Rajya Pragati Paksha (KRPP).

Congress is said to be trying to get Reddy, a former BJP minister, to vote for their candidate. However, the saffron party is also trying to woo the same legislators.

Moreover, Deputy Chief Minister and Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivkumarr has claimed on multiple occasions there was an attempt by the BJPJD(S) combine to “poach” their votes by way of bribes and threats.

Interestingly, he hasn’t shied away from claiming that he was in touch with some NDA MLAs as well, adding that the Congress would get “conscience votes”.

Shivakumar said that Congress MLAs would be put up in a hotel in Bengaluru and ferried to the Vidhana Soudha in a bus together to vote on Tuesday.

A Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting will be held under the chairmanship of CM Siddaramaiah a day prior. A mock vote for the Rajya Sabha elections would also be conducted.

4 seats go to polls

As many as four Rajya Sabha seats are up for grabs in the state.

The terms for the seats expire on April 2. Congress has retained Upper House incumbent MPs Naseer Hussain and GC Chandrashekhar but has replaced L Hanumanthaiah with former Union Minister Ajay Maken.

BJP on the other hand has replaced sitting Rajya Sabha MP and Union Minister Rajeev Chandrashekhar with Narayansa Bhandage.

Saffron party ally JD(S) raised eyebrows by fielding a fifth candidate in Kupendra Reddy when only four seats are up for grabs. Congress has alleged this is an attempt to poach the votes of their MLAs.

Rajya Sabha MPs are elected mainly by MLAs. As many as 46 MLAs are necessary to elect an Upper House member from Karnataka. The Congress can ensure two of their candidates get elected with 92 votes but to win the third seat, they require 138 votes.

This is three short of their 135 MLAs. They require the votes of at least three independents for the third win. Meanwhile, a combined 85 MLAs will secure the BJP and JD(S) a single seat.

However, if they manage to secure the votes of some independent MLAs and crossvoting by Congress legislators, they might be able to drag themselves to 92 to ensure a seat for Reddy, which appears to be a tough ask.