Less than a fortnight before the Rajya Sabha elections, Congress on Thursday suffered another jolt in Gujarat after two of its MLAs tendered their resignations. 

Akshay Patel from Karjan and Kaprada MLA Jitu Bhai Chaudhary have resigned from the party, which is likely to make it a close contest in the Upper House of the Parliament.

"Two MLAs Akshay Patel and Jitu Bhai Chaudhary (both from Congress) have resigned voluntarily from the post of MLA and I have accepted it," Rajendra Trivedi, Gujarat Assembly Speaker informed.

Two MLAs Akshay Patel and Jitu Bhai Chaudhary (both from Congress) have resigned voluntarily from the post of MLA and I have accepted it: Rajendra Trivedi, Gujarat Assembly Speaker pic.twitter.com/nKqSeRgafo

— ANI (@ANI) June 4, 2020

Blaming the BJP for poaching MLAs, Gujarat Congress chief Rajeev Satav said that BJP's priority is only power and not people.

"The BJP government of Gujarat does not have the money to improve the health facilities of Gujarat even in the time of this disaster, but there is money for the purchase of MLAs. BJP's priority is only power, not the suffering of the people," he tweeted.

In March, five Congress MLAs from Gujarat resigned, bringing the party's total tally in the state to 68.

The latest developments have left the Congress dismayed as it has injected an element of uncertainty in its plans to win two of the four Rajya Sabha seats.

The state assembly has 182 seats, out of which 103 are occupied by the BJP while the congress now has 66. To win a Rajya Sabha seat, a candidate will require 37 votes. After the fresh resignations, it will be tough for Congress to win more than one seat.

Elections for Rajya Sabha are scheduled for June 19.