Rajasthan Cong MLAs 'resort' to cricket as stay extended till RS polls

With just four days remaining for the Rajya Sabha polls to three seats from Rajasthan, Congress MLAs have been keeping themselves busy at a resort in Jaipur by holding discussions on the economy and COVID-19, besides playing cricket and badminton. Over 100 legislators are set to stay in the resort until the elections on June 19.

During a press conference on Monday (June 15),  All India Congress Committee general secretary Avinash Pande said it was decided that the MLAs would stay together so that the attempts that the BJP had carried out in Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh did not succeed in Rajasthan. Since June 11, the MLAs have been staying in the resort amid allegations that the BJP was trying to lure them.

“We are staying like a family and this is a blessing in disguise,” Pande said. The MLAs took part in a workshop on Monday and discussed the economy and the impact of the COVID-19. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot too participated in the discussion, a party leader said.

Related News: Rajasthan Congress MLAs stay overnight at resort to thwart poaching bid

Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot, who left for Delhi on Saturday, was also back at the hotel, JW Marriott on the Delhi-Jaipur highway, on June 15 afternoon, party sources said. In the evening, the MLAs played cricket, football and badminton on the hotel lawns. The MLAs will watch Deepika Padukone-starrer Chhapaak, which deals with the theme of acid attacks, before dinner.

The Congress government had alleged that the BJP was trying to poach its MLAs and topple the Gehlot government in the state. It said that the state’s Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) and Special Operations Group (SOG) of its police had been looking into the matter. The BJP, however, has dismissed the developments as theatrics, self-staged by Ashok Gehlot and challenged the ruling party to produce evidence to back the charges.

The Congress has nominated KC Venugopal and Neeraj Dangi for the polls for three seats. The BJP has fielded Rajendra Gehlot and Onkar Singh Lakhawat.