Gujarat RS polls: Cross-voting delays vote counting; BJP, Cong take fight to EC

New Delhi/Ahmedabad: The cross-voting in the favour of BJP during the Rajya Sabha elections on Tuesday has resulted in a battle between the saffron party and the Congress, which have taken the fight to the Election Commission (EC).

While Congress leaders Randeep Surjewala and RPN Singh approached the EC, demanding quashing of votes of two grand old party's MLAs, BJP leaders said there was no substance in Congress’ allegations.

A delegation of Union ministers MA Naqvi, Piyush Goyal, Arun Jaitley, Ravi Shankar, Nirmala Sitharaman and Dharmendra Pradhan, also met EC officials and asked the poll panel to start the counting at the earliest.

The two MLAs showed their ballot papers to BJP party president Amit Shah and Union minister Smriti Irani instead of showing it to the authorised Congress agent, thus violating the provisions of Rule 39 of Conduct of Election Rules, 1961.

While talking to the media, Surjewala said, "The INC today went to ECI as two legislators Bhola Bhai Gohil and Raghav ji Bhai Patel had shown their votes not to the authorised person but to the BJP national president Amit Shah, Smriti Irani and to the independent candidate Balwant Singh Rajput. The vote is liable to be rejected as per the verdict of the Supreme Court and under the Section 39 of the Conduct of Election Rules."

The Congress also produced a video of the poll proceedings to the commission.

"We have requested the ECI to exercise its constitutional obligation duty that is imposed upon the EC by the constitution to uphold the constitution and to ensure that these people who have disclosed their votes to non-authorised persons their votes should not be counted and should be rejected," he added.

Meanwhile, BJP leaders have urged the EC to start the counting of votes and declare the result. "The decision of presiding officers is final. If neither they (Congress) nor election observers object to it when votes were cast, then the votes cannot be questioned now,” Piyush Goyal said after meeting the EC officials.

Goyal added that, "the counting of votes should be done immediately and results declared".

Ravi Shankar Prasad said the Congress was reacting out of fear of losing the poll, in which its senior leader Ahmed Patel is locked in a tight fight with a Congress rebel fielded by the BJP.

Tough battle for Ahmed Patel?

Amit Shah and colleague Irani are through to the Rajya Sabha, but Congress’ senior leader Ahmed Patel was kept on tenterhooks till the very end for the third seat from the Gujarat Assembly.

The Congress’ chances were dimmed with cross-voting, infighting and resignations as Ahmed Patel struggles to be re-elected for the fifth time in what has snowballed into a prestige battle between the BJP and the Congress.

Each candidate needs 45 votes to go through. With 121 MLAs in the Assembly, the BJP's first choices were Amit Shah and Smriti Irani, leaving their third candidate Balwantsinh Rajput with 31 spare MLAs.

Until recently, Rajput was Congress' chief whip in the House before defecting to the BJP. He depended on rebels and smaller parties to make up for the deficit.

Congress chief Sonia Gandhi's political advisor Ahmed Patel had the clear support of 44 MLAs, discounting senior leader Shankersinh Vaghela. 

"As Ahmed Patel is going to lose, I have not given my vote to him," Vaghela said after casting his vote.

But two other Congress leaders -- Raghavji Patel and Dharmendrasinh Jadeja --also voted for the BJP, it is learnt. This left Patel with 42 votes from his own party.

Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party has two MLAs, one of whom – Kandhal Jadeja -- has said he will not vote for Ahmed Patel. It was not clear how the other NCP leader, Jayant Patel, voted.

The lone JD(U) MLA, Chhotubhai Vasava, said he voted for Ahmed Patel as the “ruling BJP has done little for tribal people and the poor”. 

He said the decision to vote for the Congress nominee was solely his own and not necessarily that of the party which he represents. Party boss and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has recently defected to the NDA.

"Nitish Kumar did not contact me over voting, and there was nothing like a whip issued by the party in this regard. The decision to vote for Patel was my own," he said.

Whereas, JD(U) General Secretary KC Tyagi said that Chhotubhai had voted for BJP after getting instructions from Nitish Kumar.

A fight for a seat is taking place for Rajya Sabha polls in Gujarat after a gap of two decades.