BHOPAL: Rebel Congress MLA, including six ministers, on Friday cancelled at the last minute their plan to return to Bhopal from Bengaluru, where they have been camping.
Speaker NP Prajapati had summoned six MLAs in the state assembly to share details of their resignations on Friday and seven on Saturday for the same purpose.
As per the previous plan, most of the MLAs were scheduled to arrive in Bhopal by Friday evening. “The legislators had reached the Bengaluru airport. However, at the last minute they dropped the plan to return to Bhopal. They were told not to go to the Madhya Pradesh capital for security reasons as Congress workers have gathered outside the Bhopal airport holding sticks,” Pankaj Chaturvedi, a loyalist of Jyotiraditya Scindia, who recently quit Congress and joined the BJP, said.
He further said that only a small posse of central security force had been deployed to control the situation. “Arrival of MLAs will be rescheduled if adequate force is deployed for their security,” he added.
Twenty-two Congress legislators in the state resigned after former Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia quit the Congress earlier this week. Nineteen of the MLAs have been camping in Bengaluru. The 15-month-old Kamal Nath-led government has been facing deep crisis following the resignation of the 22 MLAs.
Twelve MLAs were among 19 people scheduled to travel to Bhopal in two chartered flight.
Six MLAs Tulsi Silawat, Govind Singh Rajput, Praduyamn Singh Tomar, Prabhuram Choudhry, Rajay Vardhan Singh and Kamlesh Jatav were to travel in a nine-seater aircraft along with former BJP minister Umashankar Gupta and Santram Saronia husband of MLA Raksha Saronia.
Five rebel MLAs Suresh Dhakad, Jaswant Jatav, Imarti Devi, Manoj Choudhary, Adil Singh Kansana and Raksha Sironia were to travel with BJP MLA Arvind Singh Bhadoria, Vidisha MP Ramakant Bhargava and Punit Sharma and Mohan Singh in 10-seater aircraft.
Speaker NP Prajapati said that he waited for three hours but MLAs did not appear. Hence, he would issue fresh dates. He added seven MLAs are expected on Saturday and he would wait to record their statement.
Director of Vidhan Sabha security has written a letter to the DGP seeking central reserve forces for the safety of MLAs. It is stated that MLAs had raised security issue and sought central security forces. The officer sought central forces to ensure that MLAs reach assembly safely and record statements before the Speaker.
