At least five of the 90 Congress legislators did not turn up, but the party said they had conveyed their inability to attend due to different reasons. (File)

With two Madhya Pradesh Congress MLAs defecting to the BJP last week, and speculation that more are likely to follow suit, the Congress legislature party met on Sunday, with legislators taking an oath that they will not break away.

The oath to 84 Congress legislators was administered by former tribal minister Omkar Singh Markam in the presence of Pradesh Congress Committee chief and former chief minister Kamal Nath, at whose residence the meeting was held.

At least five of the 90 Congress legislators did not turn up, but the party said they had conveyed their inability to attend due to different reasons.

Party insiders said the oath was not on the official agenda but MLAs ended up swearing their loyalty to the Congress because Markam said it was the need of the hour.

The Kamal Nath government lost power in March after 22 MLAs followed party leader Jyotiraditya Scindia in defecting to the BJP. Last week, Pradyumna Singh Lodhi and Sumitra Kasdekar also joined the BJP.

BJP believes if the party could get more Congress MLAs to resign, thereby increasing the number of seats where by-elections will be held, it will hope to inch closer to establishing a simple majority on its own without having to depend on the Scindia loyalists.