Another Congress MLA quits in Madhya Pradesh, joins BJP

Rahul Singh is 26th Congress MLA to have resigned since March and joined the BJP.

Rahul Singh, who resigned as a Congress MLA on Sunday, joining the BJP at its Bhopal office on October 25, 2020.

Rahul Singh joined the BJP on Sunday, hours after resigning as a Congress legislator in Madhya Pradesh, dealing another jolt to the party eight days ahead of the byelection to 28 seats.

Claiming Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had created a “positive atmosphere” in Madhya Pradesh, the former MLA from Damoh told reporters here, “In the 15 months of the Congress government, there was neither development in my region nor did Kamal Nath pay any heed to our demands.”

Mr. Singh took the party’s membership at its Bhopal office in the presence of Mr. Chouhan and State BJP president V.D. Sharma, becoming the 26th Congress MLA to have resigned since March and joined the BJP thereby bringing down the Congress strength in the 230-member Assembly to 87.

“He had resigned on Friday but I had asked him to reconsider his decision,” said State Vidhan Sabha pro-tem Speaker Rameshwar Sharma. “Singh ji called me last night (on Saturday) saying he was sure about it and wanted his resignation to be accepted on the auspicious day today.”

“Another MLA was sold to mama’s (reference to Mr. Chouhan) black earnings,” Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh wrote in Hindi on Twitter. “It seems mama will fill more sold-out Congress traitors in the BJP than its real workers. I pity those honest Sangh and BJP workers who have led BJP until now. Where is Jayant Malaiya ji?”

Of the 28 seats up for contest, 25 were vacated owing to resignations of Congress MLAs while three were vacated by deaths of sitting legislators.