MP: Gopal Bhargava holds meet with BJP MLAs at party office

Leader of the Opposition in Madhya Pradesh Assembly and senior BJP leader Gopal Bhargava on Thursday held a meeting with BJP MLAs at party office, a day after the Bhopal Congress and BJP got into a scuffle in Madhya Pradesh Assembly.

BJP MLAs Bhupendra Singh and Sanjay Pathak were also present during the party meeting called by Gopal Bhargav today.

"Madhya Pradesh Congress is afraid and a cowardly government. I don't understand why did they seek a division of votes yesterday when the BJP had not asked for it? Congress created a drama yesterday to prove their majority," Bhargava said.

"If the Congress party really wants to prove their majority in the state, a trust-vote must be conducted," he added.

Bhargava told media persons here that the BJP will hold a discussion with the two MLAs who cross voted during the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill in the Assembly yesterday.

Meanwhile, Sanjay Pathak said, "We have not received any information regarding the two MLAs whether or not they are leaving the BJP. We will discuss the entire matter with them and then decide what to do."

"Congress government will fall due to its internal party loopholes, BJP doesn't require to do anything in this regard," said Pathak.

In a surprise development, two BJP MLAs, Narayan Tripathi and Sharad Kaul on Wednesday backed the Kamal Nath Government during voting on Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly.

The development came on the day when Bhargava claimed that once they receive direction from their party's top command, the Congress government would not last even 24 hours.

Attacking the BJP after voting, Chief Minister Kamal Nath asserted that Wednesday's voting proved that the Congress government is a majority government.

The tussle between two parties began yesterday when Congress and BJP got into a scuffle in Madhya Pradesh Assembly after Bhargava claimed that if they receive direction by his party's top brass, the government would not last even for 24 hours.

The Chief Minister responded by saying that if needed, the Opposition can move a no-confidence motion.

The Madhya Pradesh political developments come against the backdrop of the defeat suffered by the Congress-JDS government during the trust vote in Karnataka Assembly on Tuesday.

After the trust vote, BJP leaders had claimed that the situation of the Madhya Pradesh government was even worse than the recently ousted Congress-JDS government in Karnataka.