Cong tried to topple Rajasthan's Bhairon Singh Shekhawat govt in 1996, alleges BJP

Junking allegations of horse-trading, Rajasthan BJP chief Satish Poonia on Tuesday attacked the Congress, charging it with the bid to topple his party’s Bhairon Singh Shekhawat government in 1990s.

“In order to prevent the formation of the Bhairon Singh Shekhawat government and to form a Congress government in Rajasthan in 1993, Bhajan Lal had brought 'suit cases' in a charter plane from Haryana. Ashok Gehlot was the union minister at that time,” Poonia said.

Poonia said conspiracies were hatched to topple the BJP government in 1996 when Shekhawat had gone to the USA for treatment and he had to rush back.

“At that time, money was offered to MLAs,” he said.

“Those who are making false allegations about horse-trading have done 'elephant trading' by buying six BSP MLAs twice,” he said.

Poonia alleged that independent legislators kept at the ‘Congress MLA camp’ are being intimidated.

“Why is the chief minister preventing them from going out. He should answer this to the people of the state,” he said referring to the legislators’ stay at a hotel in Jaipur.

Poonia said the chief minister was leveling false and baseless allegations against the BJP and was trying to establish his absolute monopoly in the government.

“More than 300 people have died in the state due to coronavirus so far. Thousands of people have been infected, and the number is on the rise but the chief minister, ministers and MLAs are enjoying in the hotel,” he said.

Alleging that BJP is trying to poach its MLAs before the June 19 Rajya Sabha polls, the ruling Congress has kept them at a hotel on the Delhi highway in Jaipur. The BJP also shifted its MLAs to a hotel on Tonk Road.