Keeping MLAs under political pressure not good for democracy, says Tomar on Rajasthan Congress

As the Congress has moved its MLAs to Udaipur fearing poaching by the opposition ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls, Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Saturday said keeping legislators under pressure in a democratic system is uncalled for. Tomar, who is also the BJP in-charge for the elections in Rajasthan, was in Jaipur on Saturday to take part in a party meeting to form the strategy ahead of the polls to four seats in the Upper House on June 10.

On the Congress' move to keep its MLAs and supporting legislators together at a hotel in Udaipur, Tomar said, "In a democratic country, pressure politics and politics of influence is not good."

The minister of agriculture and farmers welfare said that the BJP does not require shifting of any of its legislators like the Congress as the saffron party is going to hold a training camp for them.

Replying to question on the Bahujan Samaj Party issuing a whip for legislators who won on its ticket and later defected to the Congress, he said, "Every worker of any party should follow the party whip."

The BSP's Rajasthan unit on Saturday issued a whip asking the six BSP-turned-Congress MLAs to vote for Independent candidates instead of the Congress and BJP candidates in the Rajya Sabha elections.

The Congress has fielded Mukul Wasnik, Randeep Surjewala and Pramod Tiwari while the BJP has fielded former minister Ghanshyam Tiwari and has supported media baron Subhash Chandra, who filed his nomination as an Independent candidate.