Asserting that P A Sangma would emerge victorious in the Presidential polls, National Democratic Alliance ally Janata Party National President Subramanian Swamy claimed there would be cross-voting from the Congress in his favour.
A day after the Bharatiya Janata Party was left embarassed after its MLAs cross voted in the Presidential election, former Karnataka chief minister B S Yeddyurappa was in all praise for the newly-elected President -- Pranab Mukherjee.
Ahead of the elections, a lot had been spoken of the large number of leaders defecting from the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party to the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena. In fact, a month before the polls, more than two dozen Congress-NCP leaders quit and joined the BJP in hopes of riding high on the Narendra Modi wave. While for some the shift has brought in good fortune, for others it has brought loss. Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com analyses how these defectors have fared.
BSR Party chief Sriramulu has claimed that he has the support of over 20 BJP MLAs. He would need just ten MLAs from the BJP to cross vote in order to defeat Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda reports Vicky Nanjappa.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday issued notices to its seven members of legislative assembly, disqualifying them for cross-voting in Legislative Council polls on April 13.
'...getting drenched in the rains, doing farm work, labour and sweating it out so that they can get their evening meals.' 'I want to tell them that this Ram Nath Kovind of Paraunkh village is going to Rashtrapati Bhavan as their representative.'
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday stood firm behind noted lawyer Ram Jethmalani, its Rajya Sabha candidate from Rajasthan, and denied it was holding up its MLAs in a resort to ensure they do not indulge in cross-voting in the polls.
While the BJP has the numbers to send its eight candidates to the Upper House, its ally, Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party, which has four MLAs in the 403-member UP assembly, holds key to the fate its ninth nominee.
The by-elections to 18 assembly constituencies will decide if the ruling AIADMK remains in power or not.
Cracking the whip, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday summarily expelled eight of its MPs who cross-voted or abstained during the trust vote as shocked opposition parties got down to fix errant MPs whose actions helped the United Progressive Alliance government survive.
Anil Singh, the Unnao MLA, said, "I am with Maharaj-ji (Adityanath)."
Thanking the United Progressive Alliance leadership and its constituents for a "convincing" victory in the trust vote, a beaming Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday night said whatever is necessary under the law will be done on charges of bribing MPs.
Party sources revealed some half-a-dozen more legislators faced suspension for their outbursts against Modi.
In a bid to embarrass National Democratic Alliance-backed presidential nominee Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, the Congress on Tuesday sought disqualification of former minister K Natwar Singh, a day after he proposed his name in the election.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday sought disqualification of 10 of its legislators in Uttar Pradesh on charges of indulging in cross-voting during the confidence vote won by Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Keeping in mind the forthcoming Rajya Sabha elections, President Pranab Mukherjee and the Centre have decided to extend by a week the deadline to discuss the Telangana bill.
Pratibha bagged votes with a value of 3,25,180 while her rival 'independent' candidate Bhairon Singh Shekhawat got votes worth 1,67,050.
C P Joshi pips Ruchir Modi to become RCA president
Rawat also said a legal framework is needed to be in place for holding simultaneous polls.
The biennial elections for five Rajya Sabha seats from West Bengal began in Kolkata Tuesday morning as six candidates put up fight for berths in the Upper House.
NCP MLA Kandhal Jadeja said his party has decided to support BJP candidate.
This will be his second term at the helm in the Indian cricket board, more than a decade after his first term ended.
Mayawati was outmanoeuvred by the BJP in the race for the Rajya Sabha in Uttar Pradesh just days after she helped the Samajwadi Party snatch two Lok Sbaha seats from the saffron party in bypolls.
The Congress had sent the 44 legislators to the resort to fend off 'poaching' attempts by BJP.
The party, banking on the legacy of former PM Chaudhary Charan Singh, had no MP and its lone MLA had switched to the BJP.
The Congress won three seats, Shiv Sena won two, while the Nationalist Congress Party, Bharatiya Janata Party and an Independent bagged one seat each.
The BJP is still short of the halfway mark of 123 in the 245-member House, but can now muster a 'working' majority with help of allies, friendly parties, some Independents and nominated members.
While Azad, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, has been made in charge of Uttar Pradesh, Nath will look after Punjab and Haryana, party General Secretary Janaradan Dwivedi said.
The elections to the Upper House from the state, where assembly polls are due later this year, have received greater attention with BJP president Amit Shah and Union Minister Smriti Irani entering the fray and the Congress putting up its heavyweight Ahmed Patel.
The saffron party is assured of victory in eight of the ten seats in UP going by its dominant numbers in the state assembly.
The desertion of MLAs is worrying for the party which has fielded its senior leader Ahmed Patel for the Rajya Sabha election.
The resignation of Balwantsinh Rajput (who was also the chief whip), Tejashreeben Patel and Prahlad Patel reduced the Congress's tally to 54 in the 182-seat assembly.
Under the Supreme Court-monitored proceedings, the result of the vote will be given to the court on Wednesday morning.
The Congress is finding it tough to accommodate defeated senior leaders in the Rajya Sabha as it does not have the numerical strength in various assemblies to win the seats.
Banerjee said the TMC would file a defamation case against the CBI and other central agencies for 'harassing and defaming' its leaders.
"The BJP tried every trick to defeat the BSP candidate and indulged in malpractices," the BSP supremo alleged.
Stung by cross-voting of seven dissident Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam members of Legislative Assembly in Thursday's Rajya Sabha polls, party founder and Leader of the Opposition Leader in the assembly Vijayakant on Friday charged them with betrayal as they were given a political identity by him.
Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav, his party colleague Pawan K Verma in Bihar and senior Congress leaders B K Hariprasad and Rajiv Gowda of Karnataka were among the 12 candidates who filed their nominations on Monday on the last day for June 19 elections for Rajya Sabha berths in 4 states.
As the elections appear closer, the nervousness in the Congress party has become more visible. Each one is frantically concerned about his own position rather than wanting the Congress party to get ready for a spirited fight.
Another MLA Rekha Arya, who was also supposed to join the BJP on Wednesday, is visiting the Simhasth Kumbh in Ujjain, but has sent her acceptance to the party.
