Lok Dal MLA switches sides, joins BJP

In yet another setback for the Indian National Lok Dal ahead of the Haryana Assembly polls, its MLA from Ratia joined the ruling BJP here on Thursday.

The MLA, Ravinder Baliala, joined the party along with Jagdish Yadav, who was a minister in Bansi Lal-led government in the mid 1990s.

Both Baliala and Yadav said they have joined the BJP unconditionally.

The development comes just a day ahead of the Monsoon Session of the state assembly, likely to be the last before Haryana goes to the polls which are due in October.

The brief session will end on Tuesday, with a two-day weekend break in between.

The two were welcomed into the party-fold by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and state Bharatiya Janata Party chief Subhash Barala.

Good and able people are always welcome to join us, and our doors will remain open for them, Khattar told reporters here.

The INLD has been decimated since it split last year over a feud in the Chautala family and several members switched over to the BJP.

In the 90-member Haryana Assembly, BJP has 48 MLAs. The INLD technically has 11 MLAs but four of them support the Jannayak Janata Party, which broke away from it. Six other INLD members have submitted their resignations.

The Congress has 17 MLAs, the Shiromani Akali Dal and the Bahujan Samaj Party one each. There are five independents and one seat has fallen vacant after the death of INLD MLA Jaswinder Sandhu earlier this year.

The INLD's Abhay Singh Chautala lost the status of Leader of Opposition in the House as the desertions by the MLAs brought the party's strength down. But the Congress, which is now the main opposition party in the state, is yet to pick a party MLA as Leader of Opposition.

Reacting to the INLD's assertion that it will bring up scams involving the state government during the assembly session, Khattar said the opposition should not criticise just for the sake of it.

He said no one will get away with any corruption.

"Even if Manohar Lal is found guilty, the government and the party will not spare him, he said.

Earlier in the day, the Jannayak Janata Party leader Dushyant Chautala also alleged that scams over issues like post-matric scholarships and illegal mining have surfaced.

The chief minister should issue a statement in the House on this, he told reporters.

Khattar, meanwhile, defended state government's decision to form the Haryana Administrative Tribunal despite stiff opposition from members of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Bar Association.

The purpose behind setting it up is to reduce pendency in high court of cases pertaining to service-related matters of our employees. There was a demand from employees that tribunal be set up so that service related matters are taken up promptly and that they get speedy justice, he said.

The chief minister said the BJP will start a Jan Ashirwad Yatra, beginning August 18 from Kalka and ending in Rohtak on September 8.