Ahead Of Madhya Pradesh Floor Test, Congress Moves MLAs Back To Bhopal

The Congress has shifted all its MLAs to Bhopal ahead of Monday's floor test mandated by the Governor. The MLAs were lodged at a resort in Jaipur. Chief Minister Kamal Nath has called a cabinet meeting today.

On Saturday, Governor Lalji Tandon asked Speaker Narmada Prasad Prajapati to hold a floor test on Monday.

The direction came after the Speaker accepted the resignations of six rebel ministers, which brought down the majority mark in the state assembly to 113, two less than the number of MLAs currently supporting the Congress.

Last week, 22 Congress MLAs had resigned, pushing the 15-month-old Kamal Nath government to the brink of collapse. The MLAs, loyalists of Jyotiraditya Scindia, who changed camp from the BJP to Congress, are currently at a resort in Bengaluru.

The Congress, which alleged that the BJP was trying to topple its government, shifted its MLAs to Rajasthan, another Congress-ruled state, last week.

The party has also alleged that its MLAs in Bengaluru have been forcibly confined to the resort by the BJP and two of its ministers, who had gone to meet them at the hotel, were assaulted  and detained by the police.

Alleging that the matter is a national issue, the Congress said it would approach the Supreme Court.

"MP, MLAs have been abducted, pressurised and their relatives beaten… what the BJP is doing is a criminal act and we will go to the Supreme Court".

"A peace loving state like Madhya Pradesh that never had horse trading culture our MLAs never got involved in this. But now there are in a hostage like situation," the party said.

The Congress has 108 MLAs in the House, and the support of seven allied legislators.

If all the resignations are accepted, the Congress's strength will come way below the new majority mark of 104, and the BJP, with 107 MLAs, can form government.

Chief Minister Kamal Nath's government initially had 120 MLAs - just four over the majority mark of 116 in the 230-member Assembly.