Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath on Friday met Governor Lalji Tandon and said he is ready for a floor test in the upcoming session of the Assembly starting 16 March.
In a letter to the Governor, Nath also alleged horse trading by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). This comes after Jyotiraditya Scindia’s exit from the Congress and the resignation of as many as 22 Congress MLAs. Of these legislators, 19 are currently in a resort in Bengaluru while three are still in Madhya Pradesh, according to PTI.
Nath alleged that the 19 MLAs are “incommunicado in a resort arranged by BJP” and nobody is allowed access to these MLAs. In the letter, the Chief Minister also said that none of the 19 MLAs were present to tender their resignation to the Speaker, instead it was done by BJP leaders.
Madhya Pradesh Assembly Speaker NP Prajapati has issued notices to the 22 Congress MLAs. The Speaker has asked the 22 MLAs to appear before him by Friday to clarify whether they have resigned voluntarily or under any pressure, Vidhan Sabha principal secretary AP Singh was quoted as saying by PTI.
The BJP has said it will seek a floor test on March 16. “The Congress government is in minority. We are going to request the governor and the assembly speaker for a floor test on March 16 when the state budget session begins,” Narottam Mishra, BJP’s chief whip in the assembly, was quoted as saying by The Times of India.
Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh said the party is ready for a floor test after a decision on the 22 MLAs is made.
The Kamal Nath government in Madhya Pradesh has 114 Congress MLAs, four Independents, two BSP and one SP MLA. If the resignations of the 22 MLAs are accepted, the strength of the Assembly will fall to 206. The Congress, on its own, will then be left with 92 seats while the BJP has 107 seats with the majority mark being 104.
(With PTI inputs)