Bengaluru/Bhubaneswar: Two persons were arrested for allegedly attempting to bribe Odisha Congress MLAs, who are staying in a resort near here ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections in the state.
Eight MLAs, along with some other Odisha Congress unit office bearers are camping in a resort. They were sent to Bengaluru with apprehensions of horse-trading during the Rajya Sabha elections in favour of ruling BJP’s candidate.
According to the Congress sources, two persons were apprehended at a private resort for attempting to buy over Orissa Congress MLAs. While one of the accused has been identified as Suresh, hunt is on for another accused, who is a defeated Lok Sabha candidate, party sources said, adding that blank cheques were also found in their possession.
It was alleged that the accused tried to negotiate with the Congress MLA by offering a blank cheque. Both have been caught and handed over to the Bidadi police.
Rajya Sabha elections in Odisha will be held on Monday.
The eight Congress MLAs, currently in Bengaluru, are Ashok Kumar Das, C S Raajen Ekka, Kadraka Appalaswamy, Mangu Khilla, Nilamadhab Hikaka, Pabitra Saunta, Prafulla Chandra Pradhan and Satyajeet Gomango. They were moved to Karnataka amid concerns within the party over possible cross-voting and alleged attempts at poaching by rival political groups.
The ruling BJP is positioned to comfortably secure two seats with 79 MLAs and the support of three Independents, while BJD has the numbers for one. The Conch party has fielded two nominees: senior leader Santrupt Misra and Dr Datteswar Hota, the latter positioned as a “common candidate” backed by the Congress, which has 14 MLAs, and CPI(M)’s one, in an unprecedented understanding to contest the fourth seat and potentially block a BJP sweep.
