Cong holds key meet in MP ahead of Rajya Sabha polls

Congress today held a meeting here to chalk out its strategy for ensuring victory of its nominee Vivek Tankha in the June 11 biennial Rajya Sabha polls from Madhya Pradesh as it criticised the ruling BJP for forcing a contest for the third seat in the state.
Besides a majority of Congress MLAs, who will be voting in the polls, and Tankha, the meeting was attended by leaders like Digvijay Singh, Kamal Nath, Mohan Prakash Suresh Pachouri and Arun Yadav, a party source said.
They met to hammer out a strategy for winning the election, the source said.
Three Rajya Sabha seats have fallen vacant in MP.

Though BSP president Mayawati has announced support of her party, which has four MLAs, to the Congress nominee, the latter, which is short of just one legislator to see its candidate through, is not taking any chances.
Of the total 57 Congress MLAs, 52 were present in the meeting. The five MLAs who did not attend the gathering due to health or personal reasons were Satyadev Katare (Leader of Opposition), Govardhan Upadhyaya, Ramesh Patel, Dinesh Ahirwar and Yadvendra Singh, the source said.

BJP has officially fielded two candidates -- noted journalist M J Akbar and party strategist Anil Madhav Dave. In order to wrest the third seat from Congress, the saffron outfit has backed the candidature of senior leader Vinod Gotia who has filed his papers as an Independent.

The BJP is sure to win two seats on the basis of its strength in the Assembly and will be left with 50 surplus votes. To win a seat in the Upper House of Parliament from Madhya Pradesh, a candidate needs 58 votes.
Nath criticised the BJP for forcing a contest and accused it of practising a politics which is bereft of morality. "They talk of democratic values, but where is morality in their conduct?" he told PTI after coming out of the conclave.
"BJP is exposed with this action (forcing contest in MP). They did a similar thing in Uttar Pradesh by fielding Preeti Mahapatra (an Independent) despite not having required votes," the former Union Minister said and claimed that BJP would indulge in "horse trading".