Goa Agriculture Minister Vijai Sardesai today claimed in the state legislative assembly that Congress had to call an observer from Maharashtra during the recently-held Rajya Sabha polls in the state, to keep its flock together.
"There was a surgical strike on July 20 (referring to NDA's nominee Ram Nath Kovind winning the presidential poll, voting for which on July 17 saw Congress members in cross voting). Next day, we voted for the Rajya Sabha seat (in Goa)," Sardesai said during a motion to congratulate BJP leader Vinay Tendulkar for winning the Goa RS seat.
The Goa Forward Party (GFP) leader claimed that the Congress imported an observer from neighbouring Maharashtra to check there was no cross-voting during the RS polls for the lone seat in the state.
"Congress had to import an observer from Maharashtra to keep their votes intact during the Rajya Sabha election," he claimed even as leader of opposition in the assembly, Chandrakant Kavlekar, sought the Speaker's intervention to stop Sardesai from making such statements.
BJP state unit president Vinay Tendulkar on July 21 defeated his Congress counterpart and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Shantaram Naik with the support of the alliance partners of the saffron party.
"After what happened yesterday, you can imagine what would happen to your party," the minister said, referring to former Congress minister Atanasio Monserratte joining the GFP.
Sardesai refuted the charges made by a Congress leader yesterday that he was trying to topple the state government.
"The problem of Congress is that they are not serious. Tell your observer (Congress leader) that the stability of our government is right from the day one and we will run this government for five years," he said.
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