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Thirty MLAs of the Haryana unit of the Indian National Congress, who had been camping in Himachal Pradesh ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections, left New Kufri near Shimla on Sunday afternoon after attending a lunch hosted by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.
The MLAs had reached New Kufri, located about 25 kilometres from Shimla, on Friday. Some of them were accompanied by family members and children. On Sunday, the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister hosted lunch for the visiting legislators at a private hotel in Chharabra. Sukhu reached the venue at around 2:30 pm and left at approximately 3:50 pm after the lunch meeting. According to sources, the Congress MLAs departed from Kufri at around 4:15 pm and are expected to halt for the night at Kasauli in Solan district. During their three-day stay in Himachal Pradesh, the legislators were kept under full security arrangements. On Saturday, the group had lunch at a private hotel near Chail on the border of Shimla and Solan districts, where around 55 people, including the MLAs and their family members, were present. The legislators were moved to the Congress-ruled state amid concerns within the party over possible poaching ahead of the Rajya Sabha election scheduled in the Haryana Legislative Assembly on Monday. Two seats from Haryana are scheduled for polling. The Congress has fielded one candidate, while the Bharatiya Janata Party has fielded its own candidate and is also backing an Independent nominee. According to the current numbers in the Assembly, the BJP would require the support of nine additional legislators to secure both seats. Amid apprehensions of possible cross-voting or attempts to lure legislators, the Congress leadership, led by former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, shifted the MLAs to Himachal Pradesh as a precautionary measure. Voting for the Rajya Sabha seats will begin at 9:00 am on Monday, and the legislators are expected to be taken directly to the Assembly complex in Haryana for the polling, sources said. (ANI)
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