The Aam Aadmi Party was quick with a dig after eight of 11 Congress MLAs in Goa went to the BJP today. "Operation Lotus fails in Delhi and Punjab, succeeds in Goa... Because when you vote for Congress, you elect a future BJP MLA," said party MP Raghav Chadha in a tweet, adding, "Congress is over, resting in pieces."
The AAP has two MLAs in Goa's House of 40 — the third state where it has presence besides being the ruling party in Delhi and Punjab. The "resting" swipe echoes what Mr Kejriwal said yesterday in his Gujarat poll campaign: "The Congress is finished."
The AAP has been saying the BJP has unsuccessfully tried to "buy" its MLAs "for Rs 20-25 crore each" in Punjab and Delhi, referring to the alleged attempts as 'Operation Lotus' after the BJP's poll symbol. BJP supporters, too, use the term for when the party manages to splinter its opposition.
"It's 'Operation Kichad (Mud)'," Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera has said about the defections. "The BJP used all kinds of tactics — central probe agencies, threats by goons, lure of money — to do this, because it is rattled by the Bharat Jodo Yatra."
Led by former chief minister Digambar Kamat and senior leader Michael Lobo, eight of 11 Congress MLAs today joined the BJP. The Congress had managed to stave this off in July, but the timing now — in the middle of Rahul Gandhi-led 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' (Unite India March) — adds to its embarrassment.
This is the second time splintering of the Congress in three years. In 2019, too, two thirds of its assembly strength — 10 of 15 MLAs — defected to the BJP. This year the party had made its candidates take a loyalty vow.
