Congress issues show-cause notices to four Haryana MLAs for 'cross-voting in Rajya Sabha polls

Chandigarh: The Congress has issued show-cause notices to four of its Haryana MLAs who allegedly cross-voted during the Rajya Sabha elections on Monday.

The action comes after the party's disclosure on Wednesday naming four of five legislators suspected of defying the official line. The name of the fifth MLA remains undisclosed.

"We have served show-cause notices to the four party MLAs," Dharampal Malik, Chairman of the state Congress disciplinary committee, told PTI over phone on Thursday.

The four legislators have been directed to reply within a week of receiving the notices to explain why disciplinary action should not be initiated against them.

The notices state that it has been brought to the notice of the party leadership that the MLAs allegedly cast their vote in a manner contrary to prescribed procedures and official direction issued by the party, resulting in the cancellation/invalidity of their vote.

The notice further describes the act, if established, as a "deliberate deviation intended to defeat the party's official position". It categorises the conduct as a "serious breach of party discipline".

The notice further states that such conduct amounts to anti-party activities and undermines the unity, integrity, and ideological commitments of the party and is also in clear violation of the party constitution, rules, and established norms.

On Wednesday, B K Hariprasad, the Congress general secretary in-charge of Haryana, had disclosed the names of the four MLAs.

"Naraingarh MLA Shally Chaudhary, Sadhaura MLA Renu Bala, Punhana MLA Mohammad Illyas and Hathin MLA Mohammad Israil. These four MLAs have cross-voted," Hariprasad claimed.

He added that he had suggested the state Congress disciplinary committee chairman to issue show-cause notices to them and for taking action.

Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda maintained that five party MLAs in total had cross-voted and added that the Congress high command has been apprised of the situation.

"The MLAs did not betray the party or me, but the people who elected them," Hooda, who is the Leader of the Opposition in the Haryana Assembly, had said.

Polling for two Rajya Sabha seats was held on Monday. The BJP's Sanjay Bhatia won one seat comfortably. The Congress candidate, Karamvir Singh Boudh, secured the second seat in a close contest against Independent candidate Satish Nandal.

Boudh's victory by a narrow margin came despipte the cross-voted allegations. Of the five votes declared invalid by the Returning Officer, four were reportedly cast by Congress legislators.

In an effort to prevent such defections, the Congress had shifted its MLAs to Himachal Pradesh ahead of the polls. They returned to Chandigarh on Monday morning to vote.

While the party secured a seat, the cross-voting episode exposed internal rifts and factionalism within the Haryana unit.