The state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership said on Tuesday that disciplinary action against party legislators accused of defying the official line in last week’s Legislative Council elections had already begun, even as the secret ballot to prevent the party from publicly identifying those responsible continued.
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Speaking in New Delhi after meeting the BJP’s national high command, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, R Ashoka said the issue had been taken over by the party high command.
“We met our national president and held discussions on cross voting issues. He assured us to leave the matter to him and said that action had already been taken against those who betrayed the party. We also discussed party organisational matters in detail. We also held discussions with our leaders regarding strengthening the party and bringing it to power in the coming days,” Ashoka said.
The meeting came days after the June 18 state legislative council election, where voting patterns triggered allegations that legislators from both the BJP and its ally, the JD(S), had broken ranks.
Ashoka later said legislators found to have voted against the party would receive no leniency. “There is no question of pardoning those who indulged in cross voting. They contested and won elections on the BJP symbol after seeking tickets from the party. Betraying the party after that cannot be condoned,” he said prior to the meeting.
Even so, he acknowledged that the election’s secret ballot makes it impossible to definitively identify individual legislators. “Since it was a secret ballot, it is not possible to conclusively identify those responsible. We have certain suspicions, but the matter will be discussed within the party,” he said.
According to leaders in the know, the BJP’s central leadership summoned state party chief BY Vijayendra, Ashoka and state in- charge Radhamohan Das Agarwal to Delhi after expressing displeasure over the alleged cross voting.
The state unit has simultaneously ordered its own inquiry, appointing a three member committee comprising MLC CT Ravi, state vice-president N Mahesh and MLA Mahesh Tenginakayi. The panel has been directed to submit its findings by June 25.
Although the party has not disclosed how many legislators it believes crossed over, internal vote calculations point to a wider rebellion than the leadership has officially acknowledged.
According to leaders familiar with the vote count, the BJP effectively controlled 64 votes after including support from expelled leader Basanagouda Patil Yatnal. Thirty votes each had been earmarked for Raghu Kautilya and Lingaraj Patil, while four surplus votes were expected to move to JD(S) candidate Govindraju.
Instead, Raghu Kautilya secured 29 valid votes, with one additional ballot cast in his favour declared invalid. Lingaraj Patil received only 27 votes, suggesting that at least three BJP legislators voted elsewhere. Party leaders acknowledged three cross votes but said the final figure could be higher once surplus vote transfers are fully examined.
The voting pattern also exposed unexpected losses within the JD(S). The party, which has 18 MLAs, expected Govindraju to secure all 18 first preference votes before receiving BJP transfers. He instead polled 14 first preference votes, indicating that at least four JD(S) legislators departed from the party line. If all four BJP surplus votes were transferred as planned, leaders in the know said the number of JD(S) cross votes could rise to eight.
