Odisha Congress MLAs Offered Rs 5 Crore, Alleges DK Shivakumar

Bengaluru: An attempt was made to horse-trade Congress MLAs from Odisha by offering them Rs 5 crores for cross voting in the Rajya Sabha polls, alleged Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar.

Speaking to the media at the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee office here on Sunday, Shivakumar said the Congress MLAs from Odisha were at the Bidadi resort. "Four people from Odisha met our party MLAs staying in Bidadi and lured them with Rs 5 crore each for cross-voting. But our MLAs sent them away saying they were not ready for horse trading," Shivakumar said.

When asked whether a complaint would be filed against those who lured him, he said, "Definitely, a complaint will be filed. The law will take its own course," he said.

"Four individuals from Odisha booked a room with the help of a resident of Batarayanapura, Suresh. Later, when our MLAs were lured, they brought the matter to our attention. Out of the four who lured the legislators, two escaped, while the other two were caught. They have admitted that they came for offering money to the MLAs. They had brought blank cheques. Through this, Operation Lotus is being carried out," the Deputy Chief Minister said. Operation Lotus is a term used in Indian politics to describe allegations against the BJP regarding the alleged use of bribery and intimidation to engineer defections and form governments in states where the party lacks a majority.

When asked whether the announcement about the state's by-elections will be made at the Central Election Commission's media conference, he said, "Let it be done, we are ready. We have no doubts; we have brought all the reports. We have discussed with all the leaders. We are ready to face the elections." On whether the Davangere ticket distribution controversy has been resolved, he said, "Where is the confusion? There is no confusion. All the leaders have said that they will accept whatever the party says."

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